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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25232272">Don't Lie to Me</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DianaandAlicia/pseuds/DianaandAlicia'>DianaandAlicia</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The 100 (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dom/sub, Everyone else who was involved with the Becca's lab storyline is included as implied characters, Everyone is of age, Multi, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Abuse, Punishment, Set during 4x08/4x09 at Becca's lab and mansion, TW self harm in later chapters, and everything is done consensually</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 03:02:09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>56,497</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25232272</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DianaandAlicia/pseuds/DianaandAlicia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Clarke is Emori and Murphy's Dominant, and she doesn't take it lightly when they lie to her about the identity of the man they tested on.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Clarke Griffin/John Murphy/Emori</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Don't Lie to Me</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Johnmurphyisqueer/gifts">Johnmurphyisqueer</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi Y'all! This is just a little something something I thought up after sending the ideas as a headcanon to Ry (Johnmurphyisbisexual) on tumblr and this story is for him. Make sure to check him out, he's an awesome writer and super nice.</p><p>I hope everyone likes it!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Wait, so this isn’t Baylis? Emori, who is this man?” Clarke asked, her voice sounding slightly panicked. </p><p>It didn’t help her apprehension much when Emori looked away and refused to answer. </p><p>“Emori, when I ask you a question, I expect an answer.” Clarke said, low and dangerous. </p><p>She saw that Emori had started to tremble and she felt bad for interrogating her in front of everyone, and having to bring her dominant voice out to do it, but she needed to know who they just killed. </p><p>When Emori still didn’t answer, Clarke sighed. Her submissive’s silence spoke volumes and she knew right away what the answer was. </p><p>“You don’t know this man at all, do you?” </p><p>At this, Emori shook her head, her face turning pink, and then red, with shame. Not out of shame from murdering the man, but out of shame that she lied to Clarke, and Clarke found out. </p><p>“Oh my God. Emori, you lied to me?” Clarke asked, and Emori had tears form in her eyes at Clarke’s tone. Clarke sounded heartbroken, betrayed, as if she was wondering what she did wrong to make her submissive not trust her. </p><p>“I’m sorry.” Was all she could say, and Clarke looked at her. </p><p>“Oh, you’ll be sorry. Go to the house. Now.” She scolded, pointing up the stairs in the lab. </p><p>Emori made her escape and Clarke looked around the room at everyone. She paused when she saw Murphy, wondering why he looked so guilty. </p><p>“Did you know?” Was all she asked, and when Murphy nodded, she shook her head in disappointment. </p><p>“Go to the house.” Was all she said, turning away and looking at the man again. </p><p>She then sighed, and made her way over to the stairs. </p><p>“Clarke?” She turned and saw everyone looking at her. Raven had moved closer, and looked concerned. </p><p>“Yeah?” </p><p>“You’re not angry, are you? Because if you are, and you need me or even Miller to take care of it, we can.” Miller nodded in agreement, ready to help Clarke if she needed it. </p><p>Clarke smiled at Raven, happy her friends were accepting and willing to assist her. </p><p>Her dynamic with Murphy and Emori was well known among the delinquents. At the drop ship, Bellamy was ready to banish Murphy after Charlotte killed herself, and Clarke disagreed. Bellamy then told Clarke that Murphy can stay, but he’d be her responsibility, and if he screwed up again, it was on her. Thus, began Clarke becoming Murphy’s dominant. </p><p>After she was captured by Mount Weather, Murphy had found Emori alone in the woods. He told her about Clarke, and if the blonde accepted, Emori wanted to be involved too. After Clarke made it out of Mount Weather and met Emori, she let the girl become her submissive, and they were a happy little family unit trying to survive another day on the ground. </p><p>“Thanks Raven, but I’m ok. I’m not angry.” Clarke reassured, knowing that punishing a submissive while angry was dangerous and stupid. </p><p>She then walked up the stairs and out of the lab, making her way to Becca’s mansion. </p><p>When she walked in, she saw Murphy and Emori sitting on the couch, looking incredibly ashamed of themselves. </p><p>“So, you lied to me. And you knew she was lying and didn’t say a word to me.” </p><p>“I’m sorry.” Emori said quietly, looking up at Clarke, tears welling up </p><p>“Why did you lie? What have I done that’s made you feel like you needed to lie to me?” </p><p>“I was scared.” </p><p>“Scared of what Emori?” </p><p>“I heard you and your mom talking about testing. I didn’t want you to test me.” </p><p>“Baby Girl I’d never even think of doing that.” </p><p>“But I’m newer, and you don’t want an ugly submissive with a bad hand.” </p><p>“I beg your pardon?” Clarke asked, disgusted at the words that came out of Emori’s mouth. “You are not ugly. You’re my beautiful angel and I love you how you are. As for your hand, it makes you unique and special. Emori, I never ever want to hear you call yourself ugly ever again. Do you understand me?” </p><p>“Yes Ma’am.” </p><p>“Good. Now, since you two lied to me, you’ll both be getting punished. John, you’re up first. Go up to our bedroom and wait for me. Emori, sit at the dining table and put your head down on the table. You’ll be in timeout until I get you so stay seated and do not talk.” Clarke instructed, going into her dominant mode. </p><p>“Yes Ma’am.” They both said, getting up to do as Clarke asked. </p><p>When Clarke made her way up to the bedroom, she saw Murphy sitting on the bed quietly. She walked past him without saying a word, going into the bathroom and going through the closet. After finding what she was looking for, she came back into the bedroom and opened the small bag that they had a few of their toys in it. </p><p>“While you didn’t lie to me outright like Emori did, you knowingly kept information from me and that’s basically the same as lying. As you know, liars get their mouths washed out.” Clarke said, gesturing to the paper wrapped bar of soap she had put on the dresser. “Then I think a spanking, ten swats with my hand and ten with the paddle, will be enough of a punishment for your transgressions. Do you consent to your punishments John?” </p><p>“Yes Miss Clarke.” He said quietly. </p><p>“Do you have any questions?” </p><p>“Is my spanking going to be on bare?” </p><p>“No. I’ll do the hand portion over your pants, and the paddle portion over your underwear. I don’t like using implements on bare skin unless it’s specifically asked for. I know you don’t like the paddle much anyway, so I’ll save you some of the pain. Either way your ass will be red so I don’t think it matters much anyway.” </p><p>Miss Clarke?” </p><p>“Yes?” </p><p>“Can we do the mouth soaping last?” </p><p>“If you want. I don’t care what order we do it in, as long as it gets done.” </p><p>John nodded and Clarke sat down next to him. </p><p>“Are you ready to begin?” She asked, and he nodded. </p><p>“Ok. Can you tell me why you’re being punished?” </p><p>“I knew Emori was lying about the man and I didn’t tell you.” </p><p>“Ok. And what punishments have we decided on today?” </p><p>“A spanking, and then mouth soaping.” </p><p>“Can you tell me what our safe words are John?” </p><p>“Green for go ahead and continue. Yellow for slow down or take a break. Red for stop, something’s wrong, do not continue.” </p><p>“Correct. John can you tell me what our rules about safe words are?” </p><p>“I can always have my safe words whenever I need them, and use them whenever necessary. If I say yellow, we stop and discuss what led me to hit yellow before deciding to continue or not, If I say red, you stop immediately and we transition directly into aftercare.” </p><p>“Very good. What is the rule regarding aftercare?” </p><p>“No matter if I finish the scene or punishment in its entirety, or if I have to stop early, I’ll always get aftercare.” </p><p>“Very good. And what’s the last, but most important rule?” </p><p>“You’ll always love me no matter what, and there’s nothing I could do that would make you love me less.” </p><p>“That’s right.” Clarke said, smiling. “I love you to the moon and back John, and though I hate punishing you, sometimes it has to be done. But know that my love for you will never go away because of misbehavior.” </p><p>Murphy nodded and Clarke leaned over, pressing a kiss against his temple. </p><p>“Is there anything you need before we start? A drink of water, or a trip to the restroom?” </p><p>“No Miss Clarke. I’m good.” </p><p>“Ok. Let’s begin. Over my lap please.” She said gently, happy when Murphy complied. </p><p>“What’s your color John?” Clarke asked, wanting to start the punishment on Murphy’s terms. </p><p>“Green.” </p><p>Clarke nodded and raised her hand, bringing it down across Murphy’s backside. </p><p>He whimpered, because when it came to real punishments, Clarke didn’t hold back. She spanked lighter if it was a fun punishment involving sex, but when it came to disobedience, she wanted her submissives to feel it the day after. </p><p>Nine swats later, Murphy was crying. Even if it was only ten swats so far, Clarke spanked hard, and she always made sure it ended in tears. </p><p>“You’re doing so well Baby.” She cooed, running her fingers through Murphy’s hair, wanting to calm him slightly before removing his pants and moving on with the paddle. “Just ten more and then it’s over. I’m so proud of you Baby.”  </p><p>She then pulled Murphy’s pants down until they gathered at his knees and picked up the paddle. </p><p>“Baby, I’m gonna start with the paddle now. What color are you?” </p><p>“Green.” Murphy cried, just wanting it to be over. </p><p>Clarke then brought the paddle down five times on his bottom, twice on his right butt cheek and twice on his left. The fifth went in the center and Clarke paused to rub her sobbing boy’s back and then tilted him forward, delivering the last five on his sit spots.  </p><p>By the end, Murphy was close to howling, because it hurt so bad, and Clarke gathered him up and held him while he cried. She slowly rocked him side to side, gently cooing at him to help him calm down. </p><p>“Good job Baby. You did it, I’m so proud of you Sweetie. Took your punishment like my good boy and I love you so much Baby.” </p><p>“I’m sorry Miss Clarke!” He blubbered, and Clarke hugged him tighter. </p><p>“Oh, it’s ok. It’s ok Sweetie. I forgive you.” Clarke said, kissing his forehead. </p><p>Once Murphy calmed down enough, Clarke helped him dress and he sat patiently on the bed until she was ready for him. </p><p>She came out of the bathroom with the bar of soap in hand lathered up after being run under the faucet. </p><p>“Thirty seconds with the soap, and then you can rinse and spit, then we’ll do aftercare. Sound like a plan?” </p><p>“Yes Ma’am.” He sniffled, shifting in his spot because his bottom burned badly. </p><p>“Baby, what’s your color?” </p><p>“Green.” </p><p>“Ok. Open.” Clarke instructed, sliding the bar of soap into Murphy’s mouth until it the half way point of the bar lined up with his teeth. </p><p>More tears started to leak out of Murphy’s eyes, the strong taste of the soap attacking his senses. He didn’t dare spit it out though, because he knew Clarke would probably redo his spanking if he did. </p><p>At thirty seconds, Clarke took the soap out and gave Murphy a kiss to the forehead. </p><p>“All done. You took your punishment like the good boy I know you are and I am very proud of you. Go rinse your mouth and then we’ll start aftercare.” Clarke said quietly, getting up to go through their bag and get the lotion. </p><p>Once Murphy rinsed his mouth, Clarke gave him some water and pulled his pants and underwear down, in order to give his red bottom a well-deserved coating of lotion. She then redressed him and gave him some cuddles for about a half hour. </p><p>“Ok Baby. How are you doing?” She asked, after a bit. </p><p>“Good.” </p><p>“Are you ok enough to grab a snack from downstairs and go back to the lab? I’d love to lay in bed and cuddle all day but I still have to punish Emori, and she’s been sitting for some time now.” </p><p>“No, I’m good. Maybe we can all cuddle together later tonight?” Murphy suggested, giving Clarke a hug. </p><p>“I’d like that.” Clarke said, thinking about how snuggling in bed with her submissives for even five minutes would seem like Heaven. </p><p>“Oh, Miss Clarke?” </p><p>“Yes?” </p><p>“I know you say it’s not my place and Emori’s punishment is none of my concern…” </p><p>“Yes?” </p><p>“No matter what you do, for her aftercare, could you maybe consider this?” John asked, going into the bathroom and returning with an almost full bottle of vanilla scented bubble bath. </p><p>“Emori’s never taken a bubble bath before, and I think it’d make her feel better.” </p><p>“If she wants to, I think I can make it happen.” Clarke said, feeling bad for Emori. The poor girl never really had a childhood. Her parents abandoned her and left her for dead because of her hand, and she only lived because the scavengers that worked for ALIE found her and took her with them. By the time she was old enough to be able to walk properly and not need diapers anymore, she had to start working, scavenging tech, especially in the small places no adult could squeeze into. She never had time to play, never went to school, and never had time for a luxury like a bubble bath. </p><p>“Ok. Go on, tell Raven I’m not sure when I’ll be back to the lab.” </p><p>“Yes Miss Clarke. Oh, and don’t forget, this is like the first time you’ve ever needed to punish Emori so maybe go easier on her than you did to me.” </p><p>“Don’t worry John, I’ll make sure she’s ok.” Clarke reassured, walking down with him. </p><p>While John grabbed a snack, Clarke went over to the table and rubbed Emori’s back. </p><p>“Ok Baby Girl, you’re up.” She said gently, frowning when she saw how red and puffy Emori’s eyes were when she lifted her head up. </p><p>The poor thing’s been crying for almost an hour by now and Clarke could just tell that she felt guilty from lying and she was probably scared stiff since this was the first time Clarke’s really had to punish her since she joined the dynamic. </p><p>The two made their way up to the bedroom and Emori just stood off to the side, not looking at Clarke. </p><p>“Emori, can you come here please?” </p><p>Emori shook her head and stayed rooted into place. She was terrified and Clarke sighed. </p><p>“Emori, the sooner you come over here, the sooner we can get this over with.” She tried, not wanting to spend all night waiting because Emori decided to be stubborn. </p><p>“Emori……I will not ask again.” Clarke said slowly, in the same dangerous voice she used in the lab. </p><p>“I’m scared.” Emori said, looking to Clarke, afraid of her punishment. </p><p>“C’mere Baby. Let’s talk. Why are you scared?” Clarke asked, happy that Emori was using her words to convey her emotions. </p><p>“John said your spankings hurt. Like really bad. And I’ve never been spanked before. I’m afraid.” Emori explained, sitting on the bed next to Clarke. </p><p>Clarke paused when she heard that, remembering that Emori didn’t have a proper childhood. She also remembered a conversation she had with Lexa once, with the late commander explaining that for young children, typically from the age of potty training until becoming teenagers, spanking was a commonly used punishment throughout all of the clans. Even on the Ark, though many parents didn’t believe in it, some parents used it, so when Clarke and Murphy started their dynamic, she didn’t have to worry about him not knowing what a spanking was. Emori on the other hand, didn’t grow up in a village, or with other children. If she messed up something while scavenging, common punishments were having to sleep outside, or having food withheld. She didn’t even know what spanking was until Clarke threatened Murphy with one once and she had to explain it to her. </p><p>“Emori, I’m not going to lie to you. They’re certainly not fun, and truth be told, my spankings have been known to be very painful. You will be crying tonight when I’m done and you will have a hard time sitting down for maybe a day or two as well. I am going to hurt you, but I can promise that I will not injure you, or give you more than you can take. Plus, you have your safe words to use if it becomes too much.” </p><p>“John said spankings are how kids are punished.” </p><p>“Yes, in some cultures that is true.” </p><p>“But we’re not kids.” </p><p>“I know that, but I also know that if you are going to misbehave like a child, you deserve to be punished like one. You lied to me Emori. A grown up like you should know better. That’s one of my rules. If you aren’t going to act your age, I’ll treat you the age you act. And after today, I’ve come to the conclusion that you deserve a spanking.” </p><p>Emori nodded, thinking everything over. </p><p>“Miss Clarke?” </p><p>“Yes Baby?” </p><p>“Do you hate me? Are you going to test me next or send me out into Praimfaya because I lied?” </p><p>“No, of course not. After I punish you, I’ll give you aftercare, and then all will be as before, like a slate being wiped clean.” She explained, knowing that since this was Emori’s first punishment, she might have many questions that might seem like no brainers. </p><p>“John said you go through a checklist. What’s that about?” </p><p>“I just ask you certain questions to check up on you. To make sure you remember my rules and just to see if you’re mentally up to what I have planned. But first, let’s talk about your punishment. If you are ok with it, I think you’d benefit from a spanking, thirty swats with my hand, and thirty seconds of mouth soaping.” </p><p>Emori nodded, thinking it through. </p><p>“Do you consent to that punishment?” Clarke asked, rubbing Emori’s back. </p><p>Though the last thing Emori wanted was a spanking, she looked to Clarke and immediately felt safe. Even if getting punished wasn’t fun, she knew deep down in her heart that Clarke was not going to cause her any serious harm or injury. Plus, Clarke would be there to put her back together again and make it better. </p><p>“Yes Ma’am.” </p><p>“Ok. Let’s begin. Can you tell me why you’re getting punished today?” </p><p>“I lied to you and said the man we killed was Baylis when it wasn’t.” </p><p>“And what punishments have we decided on today?” </p><p>“Spanking and mouth soaping.” </p><p>“Good. What are the safe words?” </p><p>“Green for go, yellow for break, and red for stop. And I can use them whenever I need to without any consequences.” </p><p>“Very good. What’s the rule when it comes to aftercare?” </p><p>“You’ll always provide aftercare no matter how it ends up, if I can finish or not.” </p><p>“That’s right. And what’s the most important rule?” </p><p>“That you love me and this misbehavior doesn’t change that.” </p><p>“Good girl. Such a good listener.” Clarke said, kissing Emori’s forehead. </p><p>"Now, before we begin, do you need anything? A drink of water, a trip to the bathroom, anything at all?” </p><p>Emori shook her head, showing that she was fine for the moment. </p><p>“Alright, do you want to do your spanking first, or your mouth soaping first?” </p><p>“Soap.” Was all Emori said. The soap was only thirty seconds long and she really just wanted cuddles from Clarke once her spanking was over. </p><p>“I’ll be right back, you stay here.” Clarke instructed, going to get the soap. She came back with a new bar, since there were many stockpiled in the closet, and popped it into Emori’s mouth. </p><p>Emori’s face twisted with disgust once the soapy taste hit her tongue, and like Murphy, her eyes started to tear up. As the seconds ticked by, she started to regret doing this first, because despite being allowed to rinse her mouth out, the taste might linger for a bit and she didn’t want to taste soap while she was bent over Clarke’s knee, crying her eyes out. </p><p>“Ok, go rinse and meet me back here when you’re done.” </p><p>When Emori came back into the room, she stood nervously next to Clarke, not sure what to do. </p><p>“Alright Emori. Here’s how this is going to go. You’re getting thirty swats. The first ten will be over your pants. The second ten will be over your underwear and the last ten will be on your bare bottom. The only implement I’ll be using during this punishment is my hand. In between sets of ten, I’ll check up on you and see how you’re doing. If you need them, use your safe words, and remember that I’m doing this because I love you so much and want you to be better.” </p><p>Emori nodded, and Clarke helped settle her over her lap. She noticed that the second Emori was in place, she grew very rigid, and Clarke knew that she was afraid again, especially now that she was in position. </p><p>“What’s your color?” Clarke asked, gently rubbing Emori’s back to try and help calm her. </p><p>“Green.” Emori said softly, grabbing hold of the comforter on the bed, to anchor herself. </p><p>Within seconds, Clarke landed the first swat, and Emori jolted forward. She whimpered and clutched the blanket harder, wishing for it to end. </p><p><em> John was right, this does hurt </em>. She thought, before bursting into tears as Clarke gently pulled her pants down. She was already emotional from her guilt and now everything was sore. </p><p>“Alright Baby, how are you doing?” She asked, going back to rubbing Emori’s back. </p><p>“Miss Clarke it hurts.” She whimpered, squirming around a bit. </p><p>“I know it does Angel. But this is a punishment and you’re not supposed to enjoy it.” She explained, lightly tracing her fingers along her girl’s back. </p><p>“What’s you’re color Angel?” </p><p>“Green.” </p><p>By the time Clarke finished the second set, Emori was bawling her eyes out and wasn’t even trying to contain her squirming. Her bottom felt like it was burning and she was pretty sure it was as red as a tomato. </p><p>“Miss Clarke, I don’t wanna anymore!”  She cried when Clarke checked in before pulling her underwear down. </p><p>“Is that a plain I don’t wanna or a red I don’t wanna? What color are you?” </p><p>“I’m green but I don’t wanna anymore. Miss Clarke it hurts so bad!” </p><p>“Emori………What color are you?” </p><p>She felt Emori sigh against her and release her grip on the blanket so she could wipe her eyes. </p><p>“Green.” </p><p>“Are you sure?” </p><p>“Yeah. Let’s get it over with.” </p><p>“Ok. Call red if you have to.” Clarke reminded, pulling Emori’s underwear down and landing a harsh slap to her already red bottom. </p><p>Just like Murphy, by the time Clarke landed the last swat, Emori was howling, practically screaming bloody murder. She was squirming and kicking so violently that her pants and underwear were kicked off and were lying on the floor under her feet. </p><p>“There we go. All done.” Clarke said gently, maneuvering Emori so she’d be straddling her lap, her chin resting on her shoulder. </p><p>“I’m sorry I lied Miss Clarke. I’m so sorry.” </p><p>“It’s ok. I know. It’s ok.” Clarke cooed, rubbing Emori’s back and rocking back and forth. </p><p>When Emori’s cries became less frantic, Clarke gently set her belly first on the bed and got up, going over to the bag that she kept their most important stuff in. In one of the side pockets she grabbed what used to probably be a dish towel in the old world, bringing it over to the bed. </p><p>“Here Baby, wanna hold Tug Tug? She asked, holding the towel up. </p><p>Emori made adorable grabby hands at the item, so Clarke gave it to her, and she smiled when she saw Emori rub the cloth against her cheek. </p><p>Considering the towel withstood nuclear war and 97 years of weathering, it was still in pretty good shape. It was thin and worn in certain places, littered with small holes and frayed on the edges. It was yellowed from age, covered in stains, but Clarke made sure to keep it clean, so Emori could keep it as long as she wanted. </p><p>As far as Clarke knew, Tug Tug was one of the cloths that Emori was wrapped in as a baby when her parents left her to die. As she grew slightly older, her toddler self named the ratty cloth Tug Tug and from what Clarke could tell, it held the same equivalence and importance as a stuffed animal, doll, or baby blanket that many children had on the Ark. Even if it might have seemed odd for a seventeen-year-old to be carrying around a baby blanket, Clarke didn’t think anything of it, because she knew that Emori already had a hard childhood, and taking away or belittling something that gives her comfort would be cruel. </p><p>“There we go Baby. I’m so proud of you. You handled your first punishment very well. Like such a good girl.” </p><p>“Really?” </p><p>“Yeah. I really proud of you Princess.” </p><p>Emori ducked her head and hid behind Tug Tug, blushing from Clarke’s praise. Clarke called her many adorable nicknames, like Baby or Angel, but Princess was her favorite and she was relieved that Clarke still considered her to be her princess after doing something as shameful as lying to her. </p><p>“Aww. Someone’s shy.” Clarke teased, booping the submissive on the nose. “You don’t have to hide from me Baby Girl. Now, since you’ve calmed down a little, is there anything specific you’d like to do for aftercare? Because I have an idea if you want to do it.” </p><p>Emori cocked her head and looked at Clarke, curious at what she wanted to say. </p><p>“John found some fancy soap, and I was wondering if you wanted to take a bubble bath?” </p><p>“Can John take a bath with me?” </p><p>“I can ask him; I don’t see why not.” </p><p>“Can you take a bath with us?” </p><p>“I don’t think the tub is big enough, but I can stay in the room with you. I’ll get Raven on the walkie talkie and have her send John over. You stay here with Tug Tug and I’ll be right back.” </p><p>It took ten minutes for Murphy to make his way to the house and for Clarke to get the bath ready, but once it was, she helped Emori into the bathtub and then did the same thing with Murphy. </p><p>“Alright, before you guys have any fun, I need to ask, have you two showered yet today? Because if you have, you can have some playtime. If you haven’t, I do have to bathe you.” </p><p>“Not fair!” Emori whined, because she showered the night before.  </p><p>“Emmy, we have the means to clean up more frequently, so don’t complain. You’re in the tub already, I might as well clean you.” Clarke said, grabbing a washcloth and putting soap on. “John, have you showered today?” </p><p>“Yes Miss Clarke. This morning.” </p><p>“Ok. Sit and wait until I get done with her.” She instructed, scrubbing Emori with the washcloth, smiling when her submissive started to giggle. </p><p>“Awwww. Is Miss Emmy ticklish?” Clarke teased, grabbing Emori’s foot and washing it. </p><p>“Stop Miss Clarke.” Emori giggled, pulling her foot away. </p><p>“Ok. Ok. Let me wash your hair and then you can play.” She said, grabbing the shampoo. </p><p>Once Emori was cleaned, Clarke left the room to get some stuff ready in the bedroom and let the two have some fun together, knowing that even if they were living in stressful times at the moment with Praimfaya on the way, they still deserved to have a little bit of fun with the time they had. </p><p>Just as she got some pajamas out for them and put them on the bed, she heard Murphy laughing before excitedly saying to Emori, “Emmy, guess who I am!” </p><p>“I don’t know…an old man?” Emori guessed, giggling at Murphy’s antics. </p><p>“No, I’m Santa!” He shouted, before beginning to laugh so hard Clarke couldn’t even hear him. </p><p>“Miss Clarke! What’s a Santa?” Emori called out, since Murphy was too busy dying from his own joke to answer her. </p><p>“Santa was a man who would come into people’s homes in the middle of the night on Christmas and leave presents for the kids.” She explained, walking in and seeing Murphy wheezing with a bubble beard. </p><p>“The people in the old world were weird. They let a man break into their houses in the middle of the night? And how could one man do it anyway? In one night?” </p><p>“Don’t worry Baby. Santa isn’t real. It’s just a story people would tell kids for fun.” </p><p>“It’s not ethical to lie to kids.” Emori answered, disinterested in Santa now that she knew he wasn't real. </p><p>“You’re right, it’s not.” Clarke agreed, tapping Emori on the nose. “I’m going to go downstairs and make some dinner for you two. When it’s ready, it’ll be time to get out so have some fun and call me if you need me.” </p><p>“Yes Miss Clarke.” They both said, and she let them be to have fun for a while. </p><p>After they ate, Clarke took them both back up to the bedroom and told them to lay on the bed. </p><p>“Are you going to spank us again?” Emori asked, shifting slightly. Her butt still hurt dreadfully and she really didn’t want a repeat of a few hours ago. </p><p>“Of course not. It’s time for you two to go to bed, and that means you need bedtime lotion.” Clarke said as she opened the lotion. </p><p>“Pants and undies down, on your tummies.” She instructed, squirting some lotion on her hand. </p><p>“Do we have to go to bed?” </p><p>“Emmy, you and John need more time to sleep. I know that spankings take a lot out of John, and I can see that you’re tired. You had a very strong emotional response today, it’s best to get some sleep.” </p><p>“Are you going to come to bed now?” </p><p>“Not yet. I have to go to the lab and talk to Raven. I’ll join you later.” </p><p>Once both of her submissives had their lotion, Clarke dressed them and tucked them in, making sure they both received plenty of hugs and kisses. </p><p>“My prince and my princess. Good night, I love you.” She said handing Tug Tug to Emori. </p><p>“Love you too.” They both said, and Clarke left the room, turning to shut off the light, and smiling when she saw that Emori had instinctively snuggled closer to John. She then shut off the light and made her way back to Becca’s lab, to see what everyone else was up to. </p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Emori feels guilty about her role after everything with Josephine and Abby goes down.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It was mid-day on Sanctum and everyone at the farm house was getting lunch around. It was a beautiful day so Indra suggested that they should eat outside again, which everyone agreed to.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Almost everyone was outside already, except Clarke and Raven, who were putting the finishing touches on the food, and Murphy and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>, who were upstairs in the bedroom they shared with Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just as Clarke was putting a spatula in the sink, Murphy came into the kitchen to talk to her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think something’s wrong with </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” She asked, washing her hands and drying them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think she’s sick. She’s been in bed all morning and when I went to check on her, she was throwing up. I think she also smelled a little like pee but I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want her to feel bad.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No that’s ok John. Thanks for telling me. Help Raven finish up.” She instructed, handing the apron she was wearing over to him and going up to the bedroom.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When she entered the room, her heart fell when she saw </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> sitting up in bed dry heaving into the little trash can that was in the room.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Honey, are you sick?” She asked, walking over.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> huffed, and Clarke stopped when she saw that as she got closer to </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>, the sick girl scooted away, as if she was trying to keep Clarke away from her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>For some reason though, she refused to leave the bed, so there was only so much she could do when it came to dodging Clarke. The blonde came over and felt </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> forehead despite her protests and was surprised to feel no fever.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did you eat something weird? Are you on your period?” She asked, trying to think of things that could cause nausea and vomiting without being sick.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> snapped, and Clarke could tell that her submissive was definitely not sick. When </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was sick she was not only a needy mess, not that Clarke minded, but she was also a cuddly sweetheart, only wanting Clarke, and maybe Murphy if she wasn’t too uncomfortable. Today </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was acting like a little brat.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Babe, I’m sorry if my questions are annoying you, but if my girlfriend is randomly throwing up, I’d like to know why. And before you bite my head off, John said he thinks you might have had an accident. Is that true?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John should mind his own fucking business.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> muttered, before looking down. After what seemed like a moment of contemplation, she slowly pulled the covers back and Clarke could see a wet spot in the middle of the bed, with </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> sleep shorts soaked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t mean it.” She said after a moment, embarrassed and ashamed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know Baby. Maybe you had a nightmare or something and you just can’t remember.” She suggested, not wanting </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> to feel bad. Clarke knew exactly what was going on, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was having a severe stress response to something. Stress almost always seemed to effect </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> physically and the more stressful the situation, the more prominent the response.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>It’s been almost a week since Josephine was taken out and everything up on the mother ship happened, and Clarke knew that </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> felt very guilty about taking part in Josephine’s plan and contributing to actions that ended up getting Abby killed. She felt horrible and the thing she hated the most was how forgiving Clarke was about the entire situation. Since she was going to bring the EMP to Josephine and help kill Clarke even though she knew she was still in there, she felt that she needed to be horrifically punished, and Clarke knew that </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> felt that she didn’t deserve the forgiveness and understanding that was given to her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Of course, if </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> could have her way, she’d probably advocate for her own execution, believing that death is the only suitable punishment for betraying her friends and especially for betraying Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>No one would allow that and because she felt she wasn’t getting the right consequences for her actions, </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> been distant, and not herself. She’s been avoiding Clarke, and unbeknownst to the dominant, a few of their friends, like Bellamy and Jackson, have been subtly calling </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> a traitor ever since they’ve all moved into the farm house.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a few days of constant stress and dealing with her own thoughts, Clarke realized that </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> body was starting to take on physical ways of responding to the stress, whether it was bedwetting or getting sick.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>This was something they’d have to take care of once and for all before it turned into a massive problem.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, no matter the reason, I need you to know that I’m not mad at you. It also doesn’t change the fact that you need a shower and I need to change the sheets. Go clean up, and I’ll bring you some new clothes in a bit.” Clarke said, knowing that </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was embarrassed, and she needed some time by herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> left, Clarke quickly went ahead and changed the bedding, taking the soiled sheets down to the laundry room, before going back up to pick out an outfit for her girlfriend.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She picked something simple, some leggings and a t-shirt, finishing out the look with a pair of fuzzy slipper socks. She wanted </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> to feel as comfy as possible since they were going to be discussing some uncomfortable stuff today.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She paused outside the bathroom door when she heard </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> talking to herself, not liking what she was hearing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re so stupid. And ugly. And a traitor. It’d be better for everyone if you just died.” </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke knocked on the door and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> stopped talking.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?” She asked her voice shaking, a clear tell that she was about to start crying soon.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I got some clothes for you, Can I come in?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> didn’t answer but a click could be heard, signifying that she unlocked the door.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke entered and saw her girlfriend standing in front of the mirror, looking menacingly at herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I got your clothes.” She said, setting the outfit down on the counter and shutting the door.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thanks.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> responded, not looking Clarke in the eyes.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Would you like some help?” Clarke asked, since </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was still standing in her soiled pajamas.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t have to.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I want to. Plus, it’s not good for your skin to stay in wet pants like that. You could get a rash and it wouldn’t feel good.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> stayed silent but she let Clarke take control and didn’t fight her when she ran a bath and helped her out of her pajamas. As she cleaned her, she kissed </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> forehead and ran her fingers through her hair.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I heard you, you know.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy, self-deprecation is against the rules for both you and John. Do you remember what I said to you the first time I ever punished you, back in Becca’s mansion?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what did I tell you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That you never wanted to hear me call myself ugly again……”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s right. That goes for calling yourself stupid as well. You are extremely smart and I don’t want you thinking otherwise. And as for calling yourself a traitor? I NEVER want to hear you refer to yourself like that again.” Clarke scolded, giving </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> a sharp slap on her thigh.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ah! Miss Clarke!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do I make myself clear?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“After we clean you up, you’re going to go wait in our bedroom. I’ll bring in lunch and you and I are going to have a long talk to work this out. Ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> nodded and Clarke could see tears welling up in </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> eyes.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry……it’s just I must be the worst submissive ever. I knew you and Josephine were both in your head and instead of trying to get you back, I was </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> give her an EMP to kill you. I’m such a stupid bitch.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> what did I just say? Do I have to wash your mouth out? I was willing to let your swearing and bratty back talk go from earlier, but if you’re just going to continue using filthy language, maybe I should tape a bar of soap into your mouth for swearing and then paddle you for continuing to hate yourself. Is that what you want?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No Miss Clarke.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s what I thought. Now this whole thing with Josephine, yes you did almost help with the EMP but you didn’t go right back. You told Bellamy, your information allowed him to take me to Gabriel and Octavia. Your information helped save me. That’s why I'm not mad. You might have almost killed me, but in the end you didn’t. You did the right thing like my good girl.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I still feel guilty though. I never should have sided with Josephine in the first place.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded and finished cleaning her girlfriend before drying her off and helping her dress. “Well, we’ll be able to talk about it and figure something out in a bit. I’ll be right back.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where are you going?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I need to talk to everyone and then I’ll bring up lunch so we can talk. Sit on the bed and wait for me please.” She instructed, giving </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> a quick kiss and going downstairs. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke made her way outside where all of her friends were eating, and she saw Raven look up with concern.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, is </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke shook her head and looked to everyone.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We have a problem.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What kind of a problem?” Jackson asked, starting to get up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, not a medical thing Jackson. As you guy might have noticed, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> hasn’t been acting like herself since we’ve had everything happen. She feels guilty about the role she played with Josephine and she’s been having stress responses recently.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What kind of stress responses?” Raven asked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This morning she wet the bed and then John walked in on her throwing up.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We haven’t seen those for a </span>
  <span>while,</span>
  <span> have we?” Raven asked, shaking her head.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean? Do stress responses happen often?” Jackson asked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not since the Year Three Disaster on the ring.” Clarke said quietly. “And if I don’t help her, we might have to deal with that again, or worse.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s the Year Three Disaster?” Miller asked, with Jackson, Indra, Gaia, and </span>
  <span>Niylah</span>
  <span> all looking confused. They were in the bunker after </span>
  <span>Praimfaya</span>
  <span>. They had no idea what went on up in space for six years.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“On April first, during our third year on the ring, John and Bellamy thought it’d be fun to play April Fools jokes on everyone. The majority of their pranks were mostly harmless, and didn’t cause any real damage. The one they pulled on </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> however, did. Bellamy and John took Tug Tug off of </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> bunk in our room and hid it in the back of the closet. Later, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> started to look for it and was asking everyone if they had seen it. This is where things went too far. Bellamy told </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> that he and John had floated Tug Tug, put it in the airlock and shot it into space. Before they could say April Fools however, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> had a full-blown panic attack. Started hyperventilating. By that point, John had gone to retrieve Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> but it didn’t do much good. Emmy was so far gone from us that she was just lying on the floor hyperventilating. All of us were there by then and while I tried to bring her back to reality, Monty injected an extremely small amount of the algae culture that had put John in his coma, not enough to knock her out but enough to sedate her heavily enough. It took two hours for her to calm down and wake up enough from the algae and since Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> was fine, she started to get better. However, after that day, she started having nightmares. For seven weeks straight, she would wake up to a wet bed and then after the bedwetting stopped, for five weeks straight she’d wake up from her dreams and throw up almost immediately. She refused to talk to, look at, interact with, or even acknowledge John for seven months, and it wasn’t until almost a year and a half after when she talked to Bellamy voluntarily again. Now, out of everyone still alive from the ring, Raven, Echo, and I are the only ones allowed to touch Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Holy shit.” Miller said, shaking his head. “How’d your dynamic work if she didn’t talk to Murphy?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, it didn’t. John had to move to his own room for about a year. It took until the start of year five for her to begin trusting him again, though there is some damage that has been done that will never be repaired. I was still a dominant for both of them, but all activities had to be done separately.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I bet you paid dearly for that.” Gaia said, looking at Murphy.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, he did.” Clarke responded, looking at John and remembering the punishment she gave him. Initially she had whipped him with a belt the moment she knew </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was ok. Then, every night before bed for two weeks straight she gave him ten swats with their paddle. After that for five months he was grounded, having to do extra chores and jobs around the ring. Once those months were up, his punishment finished with him having to write lines. “I’ll never touch Tug Tug again” had to be written 1000 times before Clarke said that he was thoroughly punished for what he did.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened to Bellamy?” Indra asked, since he wasn’t a part of their dynamic.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t know.” Clarke said, shrugging. “Echo dealt with him but it wasn’t my business.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You didn’t ask?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I didn’t talk to Bellamy for eight months after he pulled that stunt.” She responded, giving another shrug.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, how are you going to prevent that from happening now?” Raven asked, wanting to bring the focus back to </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, even though I’ve forgiven her and John, she still believes she needs to be punished. So, I’m going to punish her.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It won’t be too serious, will it?” Murphy asked, not wanting </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> to get hurt.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. I’ve come up with a perfect punishment. Since she made the choice to follow Josephine, for two weeks I am going to take her choices away from her. Obviously consent and </span>
  <span>safewords</span>
  <span> are still allowed, but what she eats, wears, and does will all be by my choosing. If she can’t make proper decisions for herself, then I’ll do it for her.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s smart.” Raven said, nodding. “I like that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded in agreement and started to gather some lunch. “I’m going to go to her now, I just wanted to let you know what was going on, so you wouldn’t worry.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke then went back into the house and up to the bedroom where she and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> quietly ate lunch. Well, Clarke ate lunch. </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> only picked at her food and despite Clarke’s coaxing, she only ate a few bites. The blonde didn’t want to push it, since </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> had thrown up earlier, so she didn’t say anything once she said she was full.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. So, you believe that you need to be punished.” Clarke started, reclining on the bed with </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> sitting next to her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve been giving it some thought and I think that since you made the choice to side with Josephine, you should forfeit your right to choose for two weeks. What you eat, what you wear, and what you do during the day among other things will be what I decide, and you won’t have a say in the matter. You have shown me that you are not responsible enough to make your own decisions, so I’ll make them for you. Some things like your </span>
  <span>safewords</span>
  <span> and consent will not apply to this and you will have full control over those. Does this sound like a reasonable punishment that you can consent to Emmy?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I still bring Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> around whenever I want?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course Baby. You can have Tug Tug whenever you need them.” She reassured, knowing that ever since the Year Three Disaster, it was rare for Tug Tug to not be in the same room as </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> at all times. The only exceptions were when she had to go to the bathroom or when she was taking a shower or bath. Other </span>
  <span>than</span>
  <span> that, Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> was always there.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I consent.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> said quietly, before grabbing Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> and crawling over, straddling Clarke and resting her head against her chest.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When do we start?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was planning on starting the moment you woke up tomorrow. Why?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“May we start today? The two weeks can start tomorrow, but I don’t </span>
  <span>wanna</span>
  <span> make decisions today.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke smiled and started to rub </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you want to, we can. Let’s go through the checklist. Why are you getting punished?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I went along with Josephine for a bit and almost killed you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what punishment have we decided on?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Two weeks of you making decisions for me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Very good. This punishment is a little different in regards to aftercare because it will be ongoing and you won’t be in any physical pain, but if you need cuddles or anything that we’ve done with aftercare throughout these next two weeks, let me know. Do you understand?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you tell me the rule regarding </span>
  <span>safewords</span>
  <span>?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can use them whenever I need them and there won’t be any consequences for using them.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what are your </span>
  <span>safewords</span>
  <span>?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green for go, yellow for take a break, and red for stop, something is wrong.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Very good Baby. What’s our last but most important rule?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That you love me and this misbehavior won’t change that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s right Baby. I love you so, so much.” Clarke confirmed, kissing her girlfriend’s head.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> didn’t respond, she only held Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> closer and cuddled next to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s make it official. What color are you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright, so for the next fourteen days and the rest of this one, I will be making all of your decisions for you. Remember to safe word if you ever have to.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. And the first thing I think you should do is take a nap. The past week has been very stressful for you and I would like you to take it easy.” She said, slightly pushing </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> off of her so she could tuck her in.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was under the covers, she kissed her </span>
  <span>submissive’s</span>
  <span> forehead and made sure Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> was close by.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you need me come and get me. If not, I’ll be in to wake you up in a few hours.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. I love you Miss Clarke.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you too Baby Girl.” Clarke said, before leaving the room and letting </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> fall asleep.</span>
  
</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The next day is a busy one for the 3</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> woke up the next day to the feeling of someone rubbing her back. She turned over and smiled when she saw Clarke standing over her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good morning Baby. It’s time to wake up.” She said gently, pressing a kiss to her </span>
  <span>submissive’s</span>
  <span> temple.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> sighed and flopped over onto her stomach, before reaching above her and stretching. She looked to the side and saw that John was no longer in bed, and the sun was shining through the window.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What time is it?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Half past nine.” Clarke answered, getting some clothes out of the closet. </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> eyed the outfit, seeing that Clarke picked out a sundress for her to wear. It was cute and she liked the shade of purple.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, how’d we do last night?” Clarke asked, going back over to the bed. She pulled the covers back and smiled when </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> pajamas and the bedding were completely dry. No stress responses last night.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke only smiled at </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> and gave her another kiss before handing her the dress and some underwear. “Go get dressed and then I’ll do your hair.” She said, and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> went to go do what Clarke told her. As happy as Clarke was about the fact that </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> wasn’t appearing to have any stress responses, she didn’t want to humiliate her by cheering her on or praising her for doing something as simple as keeping her bed dry when she slept, something she’s been doing just fine for the majority of her life. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was all dressed and ready to go, Clarke took her downstairs and made her and Murphy some breakfast.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>So,</span>
  <span> what are we doing today Miss Clarke?” Murphy asked as he and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> ate. He looked over to his girlfriend and saw her hugging Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> against her with her left arm and holding her fork with her right hand.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, it’s a nice day today. I feel like we should take advantage of it and take a walk around the compound. We can stop by the playground too, since there isn’t any school today.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Swings?” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> asked, looking at Clarke hopefully.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah we can play on the swings Doodle Bug.” Clarke said, walking behind </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> and kissing the crown of her girlfriend’s head.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Finish eating, and then go upstairs and brush your teeth. I’ll get your stuff ready.” Clarke said as she turned to walk out of the room.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Emmy?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I bring Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy, Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> will always be welcome.” She reassured before leaving the room.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>A half hour later, both Murphy and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> were ready for the day, and Clarke was standing with them by the staircase, helping them put sunscreen on.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Ew</span>
  <span>.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> said, wrinkling her nose as Clarke dabbed some of the lotion on her nose and the tips of her ears. “Miss Clarke do we have to? This stuff is gross.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You know what else is gross? Peeling skin after getting a sun burn.” Clarke shot back, reaching over and rubbing some sunscreen on the back of Murphy’s neck.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Meanie.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> huffed, and both Clarke and Murphy smiled at her theatrics.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah Miss Clarke’s such a big meanie, doesn’t want her subs to get skin cancer.” She teased, though she wasn’t entirely joking around. Sanctum had two </span>
  <span>suns</span>
  <span>, and that meant they needed to be extra careful about sun exposure.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But what if it gets on Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Then Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> won’t get skin cancer either.” Clarke deadpanned, the expression on her face making her look dead serious.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Seeing that </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> only seemed more annoyed by the response, Clarke softened her glance and kissed </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> on the forehead. “If anything gets on Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, they can have bath time in the washing machine. Nothing to worry about. I should wash them soon anyway. It’s been too long.” She said, looking at the rag in </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> grasp.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> wasn’t clean in the slightest. Sure, there were stains and yellowing to the once white dish towel, but that had to do more with the fact that it survived nuclear war, 97 years of weathering, and the fact that for almost eighteen years it traveled many times across the desert with </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>. Some of those stains were never going to come out, but Clarke already knew that.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> was with </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> 24/7, they were exposed to almost everything. Just since arriving at Sanctum, </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> wiped her face from food or sweat with Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, and Clarke has seen her both sneeze and cough into the poor rag at least once each. Adding in the fact that Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> migrated around the bed at night due to </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> shifting, Clarke knew that the rag needed to be cleaned the next time they did laundry. The biggest reason was that the last thing Clarke wanted was for Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> to start smelling and then have </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> become attached to the smell. That wouldn’t be healthy at all.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When everyone was ready to go, the three made their way around the compound, taking in the nice weather and enjoying their time with each other. They ended up at the playground, just like Clarke promised, and she sat on the bench while Murphy and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> went to play on the swings.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy swung cautiously, but still having a fun time, while </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> tried to get higher and higher with each swing. She loved swinging, because it made her feel like she was flying, and she really did want to fly.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Unfortunately for her, Clarke knew her intentions.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> don’t you dare jump off of that swing.” She warned, not wanting to deal with broken bones. </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was really high up and it wouldn’t be good if she landed badly.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Though she knew it was naughty and against their rules, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> stuck her tongue out at Clarke and jumped off, before flying forward and hitting the ground hard.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>!” Clarke yelled, running over. A scraping sound could be heard, with John dragging his feet along the wood chips to stop his swing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Clarke got to </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>, she could see that her submissive was trying her hardest to keep from crying. The hem of her dress and the sidewalk under her were stained in blood, from the huge scrape on her leg. The massive scrape covered her knee cap and went halfway down her shin. Her right leg had a bad case of road rash, though luckily there wasn’t too many massive areas of broken skin. Her palms were all scraped up too, and from what Clarke could tell just by looking, that was the extent of </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> injuries.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We have to take her to Jackson. John can you carry her?” Clarke asked, and smiled when she saw Murphy gently hoist </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> up, careful not to touch her injuries.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How’d this happen?” Jackson asked as John set </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> on the examination table.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She disobeyed me and jumped off the swing. She was too high up though so instead of hitting the wood chips, she landed on the sidewalk.” Clarke explained.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well it’s a miracle you didn’t shatter your kneecaps.” Jackson said, checking </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> over for any breaks or sprains. “Even if they may seem dumb or unfair at times, Clarke makes rules to keep you safe. It’ll be better for everyone if you follow them.” He finished, giving </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> a knowing look.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jackson quietly went to work, cleaning off </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span> legs and hands. As he prepared the iodine to sanitize her wounds, her eyes went wide. Iodine stung badly when applied to injuries.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Miss Clarke,</span>
  <span> I want Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>!” She cried, wanting to hug the dish towel.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where is Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>?” Clarke asked, glancing around the area. “Did we leave them by the swings?” She asked, before looking at Murphy.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John can you go get Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>?” She asked, and he was more than happy. Jackson was going to start applying iodine and Murphy hated to hear </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> cry. He left the medical center and ran over to the playground, before halting. One of the warriors from </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span> and an Eligius prisoner were holding Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, and it looked like they were going to take it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not yours.” He said, coming up to the pair.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I know.” The </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span> warrior said, grinning.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s </span>
  <span>Emori’s</span>
  <span>, and she needs it. Can you give it back?” Murphy said, not really having the patience for this.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s kind of silly for </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> to need a blanket isn’t it? What is she now, 24?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s it </span>
  <span>matter</span>
  <span> to you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, this rag should be used for scraps to help benefit the whole community.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just give it to me!” Murphy snarled, lunging forward to snatch it back, only to be shoved by the warrior.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not really that surprising though, the </span>
  <span>frikdreina</span>
  <span> being a useless waste…” The warrior said, but was cut off when Murphy punched him square in the face. He kept punching the warrior until someone pulled him off and he heard the person shout.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That is enough.” Clarke roared, and Murphy snatched Tug Tug out of the warrior's hands.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He handed it over and Clarke was glaring at him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, you know that I don’t allow fighting. Go home and wait in our room.” She instructed, before turning and hurrying in to be by </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just before he left, the warrior said slyly to him, “Man, seems like </span>
  <span>Wanheda</span>
  <span> has you on a pretty short leash.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy stopped in his tracks and felt all the blood rush to his face when he heard that. Anything that had to do with the neck triggered him, and even thinking about a leash made him feel very uneasy. He shuddered from his discomfort and made his way back to the house, going up to the bedroom he shared with his girlfriends and standing in the corner since Clarke would want him in timeout until she dealt with him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Back at the medical center, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was crying into Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> while Jackson finished bandaging her knees.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Am I </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> be in trouble for disobeying you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not this time. Skinned knees and having to get iodine are punishment enough.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m never </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> jump off the swings again.” </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> said, leaning in closer to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Glad to hear it.” Clarke said, laughing slightly. She looked to Jackson when he finished bandaging her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Clarke, here is some antiseptic cream. There are bandages at the house for when they need to be changed. I’d advise to have </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> take baths the next couple days so you can gently sponge everything off. Make sure she doesn’t pick her scabs and I think maybe no more playground until she’s healed.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded appreciatively. “Thanks Jackson.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you need me to look at her scrapes later tonight when you change her bandages, I can. But I think </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> should take it easy for the rest of the day and as long as she doesn’t roughhouse for the next week or so, she should be ok.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded and hoisted </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> into her arms, carrying her and Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> back to the house.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What happened?” Raven asked, once Clarke walked into the kitchen, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> on her hip.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She jumped off the swings and scraped her knees.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> you need to be more careful.” Raven said seriously, before glancing at Clarke. “What happened with Murphy? He came home crying and went upstairs. When </span>
  <span>Niylah</span>
  <span> and I went to check on him, he was in the corner.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He got in a fight with a </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span> warrior.” Clarke explained. “We’re going to go up by him now.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Raven nodded and smiled at Clarke. “Well, good luck.” Was all she said, grabbing her snack and leaving the house.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke took </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> up to the bedroom she shared with Murphy and the two glanced over to him when they saw him pressed into the corner. For the time being, Clarke ignored him so she could tuck </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> into bed to rest.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was all settled in, Clarke turned her attention to Murphy.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, please come here.” She said firmly, watching him slowly leave the corner and make his way to the bed where Clarke was sitting.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sit.” Was all Clarke said, patting the </span>
  <span>bed.</span>
  <span> Once Murphy was situated, she decided to start her lecture.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You know that fighting is extremely naughty and it is a major break in the rules. Especially physical fights.” She started, narrowing her eyes.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” He said quietly, looking down at his lap.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why did you do it?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The guy I hit, he had Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> and he wouldn’t give it back. Then he called </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> a </span>
  <span>Frikdreina</span>
  <span> and I don’t want anyone calling Emmy names, especially behind her back.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke heard </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> gasp and she looked to her girlfriend, smiling when she saw </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> looking at John like he hung the moon, sun and all of the stars in the sky for her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My hero.” She swooned, whispering and hugging Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> close.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, I am very proud of you for standing up for </span>
  <span>Emori,</span>
  <span> especially when she wasn’t there to defend herself. I am not proud of how you did it however, so if you consent to your punishment, I believe a spanking would be a sufficient enough punishment. Ten swats on your bare bottom, with my hand. In front of </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>.” She said, knowing that </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> witnessing it would be the most effective aspect of the punishment. Murphy cried easily from spankings, mostly because they hurt, but he also got embarrassed if someone other than Clarke saw him get punished. It embarrassed him if others saw him get punished and knew that he had been naughty.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you consent to that punishment John?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” He said quietly, knowing that even if it was embarrassing, he did break the rules and started a fight. He deserved some sort of consequences for his actions.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. Let’s begin. Why are you getting punished?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I started a fight and punched the </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span> warrior.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what punishment have we decided on?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A spanking, with </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> watching.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are your </span>
  <span>safewords</span>
  <span> John, and what are your rules regarding your </span>
  <span>safewords</span>
  <span>?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green for go, yellow for slow down or take a break, red for stop, do not continue, something is wrong. I can use my </span>
  <span>safewords</span>
  <span> at any time without having to worry about any consequences whatsoever.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Very good. What’s the rule regarding aftercare?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll always get aftercare no matter if I finish my punishment all the way or have to stop early.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what’s the last, but most important rule?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That you love me and my misbehavior doesn’t change that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Very good baby. Is there anything you need before we begin? Potty break, snack, or water?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No Miss Clarke. I’m good for now.” He said, and Clarke nodded.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s your color?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green.” Murphy said after a brief moment.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. Pants and undies down, over my lap please.” Was all Clarke instructed, waiting patiently for Murphy to do as she asked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Murphy slowly pulled his clothes down, Clarke saw the blush heat his cheeks. Tears were already welling up and she knew the embarrassment of being punished “publicly” was setting in.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>, bless her soul, wasn’t even paying attention, to try and save John some embarrassment. She was busy tying Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> around her face like a blindfold to keep herself from looking. Her hearing John get spanked would be enough to make him red in the face for a week. She didn’t want to make it worse by making eye contact.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy was already full on crying and trembling by the time Clarke landed the first swat, and the fact that </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was there was making his embarrassment deepen.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke usually punished Murphy and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> privately, away from each other. She believed that since each submissive was different, and had different limits and feelings toward the array of punishments they used, it was none of Murphy’s business how </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> was ever punished and vice versa. This was one of the rare times where she used humiliation more as a punishment than the spanking itself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy knew why too. When either he or </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> misbehaved, </span>
  <span>it</span>
  <span> embarrassed Clarke deeply. Their behavior was a reflection on her and how she trained them to be productive members of society. When he started that fight with the warrior and Clarke found out, he knew that it humiliated her, because it showed that somewhere along the line, she failed somewhere in their training. And Clarke believed that if her loves humiliated her, then in some scenarios maybe they needed to be humiliated back. Within reason of course.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke made quick work with punishing Murphy and by the time she was finished, he was sobbing and practically clinging to Clarke’s pant leg. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke hadn’t even hit him that bad, his bottom was only slightly warm and a medium shade of pink.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Shhh</span>
  <span>. It’s ok. It’s all done. You were such a good boy for me, I’m so proud of you.” She whispered, running her fingers through Murphy’s hair and tracing little shapes on his back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My good little prince.” She said quietly, leaning forward and kissing Murphy’s hair. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy was starting to calm down slightly, though he went rigid again and froze when he shifted slightly and his shirt rode up a little bit.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Red.” He stammered, and Clarke immediately stopped what she was doing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s wrong baby?” She asked carefully, since neither one of her </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span> have ever called red during the transition into aftercare before.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Red.” He rasped out, before pushing his face against the bedspread and trembling harder, tears falling rapidly.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Baby what’s wrong?” Clarke asked again, starting to feel slightly panicked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shirt.” Murphy whimpered after a moment, and that was when everything started to make sense.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Baby. Don’t worry, I’ll fix it.” She said gently, carefully pulling Murphy’s shirt back down from where it had ridden up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy’s entire trunk was riddled with scars. They all came from various times in his life, whether they were from his mother’s abuse on the Ark, his various times being attacked and tortured on the ground, and even the newer scar on his shoulder, from when </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> attacked him after being taken over by red sun toxin.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He had all kind of scars, from different weapons used against him, and these now silvery markings littered his back, chest, stomach, shoulders, arms and legs. His leg scars didn’t make him feel as insecure as all the others, since his leg hair helped hide them, but he really hated it when his other scars were exposed, and it made him feel self-conscious and insecure whenever anyone, even Clarke and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>, saw them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wore long sleeves often, and shirts that were sometimes bigger than his normal size, so the hem would fall lower, to try and prevent the garment from riding up whenever he laid down, or like now, whenever he was being punished.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> never mentioned his scars outright with him, because it deeply bothered him, but he also knew that they never judged him for having them, like how they don’t judge </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> for her hand. Clarke always made sure that he knew that he could talk to her about it whenever he wanted, and that it was his decision if and when he wanted to do that. She and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> would never push him to discuss something he was uncomfortable with, and Clarke tried her hardest to make any necessary accommodations that made life easier for him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke knew that since Murphy had been exposed, he was probably going to be a little shy for the rest of the day, so she knew she needed to be gentle and calm, and shower him with compliments. Murphy sometimes thought his scars made him ugly, so if he was ever exposed in front of Clarke and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>, even during sex or something as simple as bath, the two always made sure to tell him how much they loved him and how handsome they believed he was.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Baby, I’m going to put some lotion on you, and then we’ll get you all dressed again. How does that sound?” Clarke asked, reaching over and grabbing the bottle of lotion.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once Murphy had lotion and was dressed again, Clarke gently tucked him in next to </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>. As soon as he was close, </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> leaned over and rested her head against his shoulder.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thanks for saving Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>.” She whispered, giving Murphy a hug. “I’m sorry you got spanked for me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s fine.” He said quietly. “I’d do it all over again if I had to.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re a good boyfriend.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. I’m not.” Murphy said, before bursting into tears again, startling both Clarke and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Baby, what are you talking about?” Clarke asked, sitting next to Murphy and holding his hand.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I liked it.” He sputtered through his sobs.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You liked what?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span>……” He trailed off, feeling ashamed to say it. “Maybe since I liked it, she didn’t really rape……” He trailed off again when Clarke grabbed Murphy’s chin and made him look at her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was rape because you weren’t given a choice. That’s what made it rape. As for enjoying it, </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> didn’t brutalize you while she did it. If she touched you in certain ways or in specific places, your body is going to react. Bodies are strange sometimes and if she touched you in ways that made you feel good, it doesn’t excuse that what she did was rape because she took away your choice.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But I had an orgasm, and I feel bad because it felt good.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, Baby, orgasms are supposed to feel good. And they happen sometimes whether we want them to or not so that is not something you should feel ashamed about.” Clarke said firmly.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy didn’t say anything but Clarke needed him to understand.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, you were raped plain and simple. It doesn’t make it rape because of how it happened. What makes it rape is that </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> took away your choice to say no in the situation. You went along with it so she wouldn’t kill you, and that is in no ways consensual. You are a survivor and while you are entitled to process what happened in whatever way is best for you, I will not allow you to live your life thinking that you deserved it or that it was your fault. It was and always will be </span>
  <span>Ontari’s</span>
  <span> fault. You did nothing wrong and how your body reacted during the situation is not your fault. It’s more my fault than yours anyway.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy looked at Clarke with confusion. “How is it your fault?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I never should have left Polis without you and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But you had to get the flame out of there and you had a higher risk of death then I did. Besides, we got reunited anyways.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s still one of my biggest regrets. I should have taken the time to find you two and brought you with me to </span>
  <span>Arkadia</span>
  <span>. Then you never would have gotten raped and </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> never would have been chipped. I will probably never forgive myself for leaving you behind.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well if it makes up for it, I don’t blame you and I forgive you.” Murphy said, with </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> nodding in agreement.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You two don’t know how lucky I am to have you.” Clarke said quietly, looking at both </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span>, her heart swelling with love.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What brought this on anyway?” She asked, wondering why Murphy had been thinking of </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> now.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“After you sent me home and took Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, the warrior I punched said you had me on a short leash and leashes go around necks.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And that made you think of being hanged, or when </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> collared you and had you on a chain.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And when McCreary put that shock collar on me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Honey, I’m sorry. You should have told me sooner. If I knew you had gotten triggered, I would have chosen an alternative punishment, I’m sorry.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s ok. I should have told you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Baby, can you promise me that you’ll try really hard to communicate better if something triggers you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy nodded and Clarke kissed him. “And that goes for you too.” She said to </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>, knowing that while </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> didn’t have many triggers like Murphy, the rule still applies to her as well.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>C’mere</span>
  <span> Baby.” She said, pulling Murphy into a hug. She maneuvered Murphy so he would be sitting on her lap and she snuggled closer to </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My beautiful princess and my handsome prince.” She said, kissing Murphy and giving </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> a big squeeze. “You two have changed my life in ways you’ll never know. I am so happy fate has given me you. I love you so much.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you too.” They both said, cuddling closer to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>They sat in the bed for a while, before </span>
  <span>Niylah</span>
  <span> came up to let them know that lunch was ready. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, can you carry Emmy down?” Clarke asked, since it was hard to walk with bandaged knees.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He nodded and as he picked her up, she squealed and made grabby hands at the bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> too!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh no we can’t forget Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>.” Murphy laughed, handing the towel over to </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> before leaving the room.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before Clarke followed them, she quickly made the bed, and smiled when she heard </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> laughing from the dining room. She felt so lucky to have </span>
  <span>Emori</span>
  <span> and John in her life and she felt full of love as she walked downstairs to join them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The washing machine can be scary to someone who's never used one before</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I’m not so sure………” Emori said, standing by the laundry station on The Ring. She was clutching Tug Tug in her arms, hugging the towel close. </p>
<p>“Emmy, Tug Tug will be fine, and they have to get clean.” Clarke said, trying to reason with her girlfriend. </p>
<p>It had been a few days since Praimfaya, and that meant it was a few days since the two, Murphy, Bellamy, Raven, Echo, Monty, and Harper launched to The Ring, to live for the next five years until Earth was safe to live on again. </p>
<p>Everything was working as it should and over the past few days, everyone was taking turns with doing their laundry. Clarke was able to wash her and Murphy’s clothing without a hitch but Emori was hesitant. She had never seen an automatic washing machine or dryer before and though they were common appliances for everyone on The Ring except for Echo and Emori, Clarke could tell her grounder girlfriend didn’t really trust it at first. </p>
<p>Echo had been the same way, but once Raven showed her how to properly use the machine, she was grateful, saying that this was a much more efficient way to clean clothing than when they were on the ground. </p>
<p>Emori however, didn’t trust the machine, especially after Clarke suggested that they wash Tug Tug. The towel really needed to be cleaned, considering it traveled the desert landscape of the Dead Zone with Emori for her whole life, and though Clarke didn’t want to admit it, the towel smelled unpleasant, though considering it’s probably never been washed before, it’s perfectly normal that it would. </p>
<p>“Em, just let Clarke wash it.” Murphy cut in, walking into the laundry area. </p>
<p>“But what if the machine destroys Tug Tug?” </p>
<p>“If Tug Tug can withstand nuclear bombs and 97 years after, I’m pretty sure they can handle a spin in the washer.” </p>
<p>“Besides, it’ll be a lot healthier for you if they were cleaned.” Clarke added. “Emori, all this dirt and dust isn’t good for your lungs, and you put Tug Tug up against your face a lot. You might start getting a rash or something if there are irritants on them.” </p>
<p>“But how will we know Tug Tug won’t fall apart?” </p>
<p>“The washer is very gentle. I promise.” </p>
<p>“You know, we can sit here if you want.” Murphy offered. “Sometimes it’s fun to watch the clothes go round and round. We can watch Tug Tug if you want.” </p>
<p>“Really? Miss Clarke, can we?” </p>
<p>“If it makes you feel better, we can absolutely do that.” Whatever gets this blanket washed. Clarke thought afterword, and smiled when she saw that Murphy’s offer seemed to help calm Emori considerably. </p>
<p>After a moment of thinking about it, Emori nodded and handed Tug Tug over to Clarke, watching intently when the blonde put the comfort object in the washing machine, along with some of Emori’s other clothes and got everything ready. Once she turned the machine on, the three sat on the floor facing the washer, ready to stay seated for as long as Emori wanted. </p>
<p>Emori sat in the middle of Clarke and Murphy, leaning her head onto Murphy’s shoulder, and holding Clarke’s hand. Murphy gave her head a kiss and the three sat quietly, with nothing but the sound of the machine turning the clothes around and around filling up the room.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. The Great Pancake Mishap</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Making pancakes doesn't go well</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So this chapter is a part of Ry's (Johnmurphyisbisexual) writing challenge. I asked to do #16 and 17 from the hurt/comfort prompt section and this is what I came up with. The writing challenge is still open so go check it out on tumblr!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Emori.” Murphy whispered, shaking his girlfriend awake. “Emori get up.” </p>
<p>“Huh? What time is it?” She asked, careful to keep her voice down. </p>
<p>“It’s early, but we were gonna make breakfast for Miss Clarke, remember?” </p>
<p>“Oh yeah.” She whisper-giggled, before getting out of bed and following Murphy to the kitchen. The two made sure to keep their excitement hushed, so they wouldn’t wake Clarke before she was ready. </p>
<p>It was 7:30 in the morning and both Murphy and Emori wanted to make a special treat for Clarke. It’s been about seven months after they were able to achieve peace on Sanctum and the compound was being built and added to everyday. Everyone that used to live in the farmhouse had slowly moved out, as new places were built, and now only Clarke, Murphy, and Emori lived in the home. </p>
<p>“John?” Are you sure Miss Clarke likes pancakes?” Emori asked getting out the cookware needed to make the meal. </p>
<p>“She liked them when I made them last time.” Murphy said, getting the ingredients out of the fridge and cabinet. </p>
<p>Emori nodded and stood out of the way, since cooking was more of Murphy’s specialty. She’d be ready to help though, when he needed her. </p>
<p>It was quiet in the kitchen as the two worked, since they wanted this to be a surprise, and they didn’t want to wake Clarke because of any unnecessary noise. </p>
<p>Murphy started to stir the batter and Emori watched him intently, loving it when he cooked. </p>
<p>At least until he decided to add cinnamon to the batter. </p>
<p>“No that’s too much!” She argued, trying to reach but failing when Murphy held the bowl of batter above his head, so she couldn’t reach. </p>
<p>“John!” </p>
<p>“It’s fine, plus Miss Clarke loves cinnamon in her pancakes.” Murphy argued back, standing on the footstool by the counter to keep Emori from getting the batter. </p>
<p>“John, it’s too much cinnamon!” Emori continued to argue, before accidentally knocking into Murphy, causing him to lose his footing. </p>
<p>It all happened so fast but to Murphy it felt like time was slowed down. The bowl containing the batter flew out of his hands and poured right over Emori’s head, drenching her with sticky batter. The small puddle that got on the floor caused Emori to slip and fall on her butt. The bowl clattered on the floor beside her and the two were dead silent. </p>
<p>The two waited, hoping Clarke somehow slept through all the racket but about seven seconds after everything stilled, they heard her feet hit the floor in the bedroom, with her making her way down the staircase moments later. </p>
<p>“What in the world is going on down here?” She asked as she entered the kitchen, her eyes widening at the mess in front of her. </p>
<p>At this point, Murphy was near tears, afraid he’d get in trouble for making a mess and potentially hurting Emori. If he hadn’t gotten on the footstool in the first place, he never would have tripped and let go of the bowl. </p>
<p>Luckily, Clarke could see that he was getting upset, and used her gentle voice to try and calm him down. </p>
<p>“Shhh. John, it’s ok. Emori, are you hurt?” </p>
<p>“No Miss Clarke, I’m ok. Just sticky.” </p>
<p>“Well, lucky for you, we can fix just sticky rather easily.” Clarke joked, helping Emori to her feet. </p>
<p>Even with the reassurance that Emori was ok, Murphy still looked like he was about to start crying. </p>
<p>“Don’t cry baby, it’s okay!” Clarke urged, walking over and giving Murphy a hug. “Let me guess. You wanted to make breakfast and a big uh oh happened?” </p>
<p>Murphy nodded into Clarke’s neck, and she sighed. </p>
<p>“Well it was obviously an accident, and I’m just thankful no one got hurt. Thank God you decided to use the plastic bowl this morning instead of the glass one.” </p>
<p>Murphy nodded at that, realizing that it would have been extremely dangerous if he had used the glass bowl, with Emori either getting clocked in the head or the fact that glass would have shattered all over the floor and that definitely would have made for a dangerous situation. </p>
<p>“Let’s get you cleaned up, okay?” She directed to Emori, and the brunette nodded gratefully. </p>
<p>“While I help her, can you clean this mess up? Then we can make some breakfast together.” Clarke said to Murphy, and he eagerly nodded. </p>
<p>“I’m sorry, Miss Clarke, I really am. We just wanted to surprise you.” </p>
<p>“Well, I appreciate that you wanted to do something nice, but I’m more than happy to make stuff with you too. It’ll be more fun to do it together anyways.” She finished, before kissing Murphy and following Emori upstairs. </p>
<p>Murphy smiled, glad that Clarke wasn’t angry and went to work to clean up, so they could easily make a new batch of pancakes together. </p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Trials and Tribulations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Emori doesn't make good decisions.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><em> It’s not fair </em>. Emori thought as she sat up in bed. It was an early night on Sanctum, only two hours after dinner, and she was already in bed, supposed to be asleep. </p><p>She had given Clarke attitude before dinner, so as a punishment, after dinner Clarke bathed her and helped her get ready for bed, before tucking her in for an early bedtime. Then, once she was taken care of, Clarke, Raven, Echo, and Murphy all went down to the basement entertainment area to watch a movie. From what Emori heard, it was a movie called Titanic, and according to Murphy it was over three hours long. This means that they were over half way through, but Emori was stubborn and she was going to wait up, even if it meant waiting all night. Besides, she couldn’t get in trouble. Clarke only said she had to go to bed early, not fall asleep. As long as she stayed in the bed, that meant she had gone to bed. </p><p>Still, she was angry. The whole day had been terrible. It had been raining since early morning and she was cooped up in the house the whole day. It was late fall, so it was cold outside, and Clarke didn’t want her or Murphy getting sick so the two had to stay in the house. </p><p>Being cooped up was terrible for the submissives. Between the two of them, Clarke had to give out five separate timeouts, three spankings, an after-lunch nap time and now an early bedtime for Emori. The brunette did feel extremely guilty for being so naughty, but she and boredom didn’t mix, and it was just so easy to pick fights with Murphy when she was irritated. </p><p>She held Tug Tug close to her and looked out the window. It was dark out, but it had stopped raining. This little fact made Emori remember the flower beds out in the yard. There wasn’t anything planted in the beds yet, only piles of soil, which were now turned to massive mud piles from the rain, and Emori wanted to go play in it. </p><p>It was an odd quality for her age, really, wanting to play in the mud. But Emori loved the sensation of it squishing between her hands and under her feet. It reminded her of the few good times from her childhood when she didn’t have to scavenge for a day and she had the rare chance to play outside. Plus, she got a lot of fresh air when she was outside so when she did it here at the Sanctum farm house, she knew Clarke would find no fault. </p><p>She would probably find fault tonight though, because it was dark and Emori was all ready for bed. Though Emori really wanted to sneak out and play, finally get some fresh air, now chilled by the rain, it wasn’t worth the spanking Clarke would surely give her once she was caught. </p><p>Unless.... </p><p>The more Emori thought about it, the more she wanted to do it. Plus, what if she woke up tomorrow and the mud was all dried up? Then there wouldn’t be any to play in. She didn’t get to do what she wanted today and once she heard her reasoning; Clarke would have to understand. </p><p>Feeling good about that reasoning, Emori snuck out of bed and out the bedroom. She tip-toed down the hall and stairs before quietly leaving out the front door, shutting it behind her. </p><p>The night was cold, since it was early November, and the wet chill that hung in the air with rainy weather was intensified by the wind. Since Emori was only wearing sleep shorts and a t-shirt, the temperature alone almost made her turn around and go right back to bed. </p><p>Her longing to play in the mud however, outweighed her want to go back into the warm house and she rounded the corner before sitting down right in the middle of the flower beds, covered in cold, squishy mud in the matter of minutes. </p><p>She had no idea how much time had passed, but after a while, it started to lightly rain again, a chilly drizzle falling, eventually soaking Emori as it turned into light rain. </p><p>At this point, Emori was stuck. There was no way she’d be able to sneak back into the house now, and not get caught by Clarke. She honestly had no idea what to do. She was extremely uncomfortable now, all wet and cold, but she didn’t want to go back in the house. Of course, she could obviously go back and admit to Clarke what she’s done, but Emori was in a headspace where she felt a little helpless, that she wanted Clarke to make all the decisions and call the shots. </p><p>Unfortunately for her, Clarke was probably still watching the movie because she surely would have found her if she knew she was gone. They, along with Murphy, shared a room and bed so after the movie, Murphy would get tucked in and by then Clarke would know she was missing. </p><p>Even if she wanted Clarke to be the one to find her, Emori didn’t think she’d be able to wait that long. It was starting to rain harder and harder by the minute and the wind was also picking up, making it really cold outside. She was shivering and it wouldn’t be long until her skin started to tingle from the beginning feelings of numbness as well. </p><p><em> Maybe shorts and a t-shirt weren’t the best idea </em>. Emori thought, before getting up and hugging herself to get warm. As she made her way back to the front door, she noticed that the rain was falling harder and by the time she made it to the front door, most of the mud had been washed off, and muddy water was running down her legs. </p><p>She opened the front door to get back inside and stood shocked, when she saw Clarke, Echo, and Raven standing in the entry way, putting on some warm outside clothes, confirming they were about to go look for her. </p><p>Clarke looked completely shocked, looking at Emori like she had five heads before pulling her into the house and shutting the door. </p><p>“Emori......what the absolute fuck were you doing outside?” She started to scold, as Raven went to get a towel. </p><p>“I-I....” The brunette started, before trailing off. Looking at it now, the excuses and reasons she thought up when she was in bed earlier were terrible and definitely wouldn’t fly with Clarke. </p><p>“I don’t know. I just wanted to play.” She said finally, keeping it truthful but not saying anything too stupid to doom her entirely. </p><p>“Emori Griffin-Murphy, what am I going to do with you, huh?” Clarke said quietly, rubbing Emori with the towel to minimize how much she dripped on the floor. </p><p>It was a rhetorical question but Emori still felt that Clarke deserved better than silence, so she quietly looked down and whispered, “I’m sorry Miss Clarke.” </p><p>Clarke looked up and raised an eyebrow. “Oh, are you now? Are you sorry for disobeying early bedtime rules and scaring me half to death or are you just sorry that you’ve been caught?” </p><p>“I messed up Miss Clarke, I should have stayed in bed.” </p><p>Clarke nodded and took Emori’s hand. “I think a bath is in order.” She added, and that was when Echo and Raven left. Once the two women were gone, Clarke led Emori up to the bathroom and stripped her before helping her into the shower. </p><p>“Shower off and clean all the mud away. Once you’re clean you need to soak in a hot bath.” </p><p>“But....Miss Clarke, I was bad.” Emori said, confused. Bath time was usually for fun. Even regular before bed baths were quick and got the job done in a no-nonsense manner. Even without bubbles or toys, just sitting and relaxing was for when she or John were good. </p><p>“Emmy, you are chilled to the bone. I do not want you getting sick, so you will rest in a hot bath if I say so. And you know how I feel when you and John call yourselves bad.” </p><p>“Yes Miss Clarke. I’m sorry.” Emori responded, remembering that no matter how severe a misbehavior was, Clarke did not believe in calling John and Emori bad. They sometimes were plenty naughty, but that did not make them bad people. </p><p>“It’s ok. Just clean up while I get you some new jammies.” Clarke finished, leaving the bathroom and going down the hall to the master bedroom. It was quiet in the house while Emori showered, and she knew that John was being good and probably fell asleep already. Now that it was just the three in the farmhouse, it was too quiet at times. </p><p>“Miss Clarke?” She asked when the dominant came in and started to get the bath ready. </p><p>“Yes Emmy?” </p><p>“Am I going to get a punishment tonight?” </p><p>“No. Tonight is all about you not catching fucking pneumonia.” Clarke said quietly. “We’ll discuss your punishment tomorrow.” </p><p>Emori honestly wasn’t that surprised. It was getting late and Clarke was right, warming her up was more important. “Miss Clarke?” </p><p>“Yes Baby?” She asked, helping Emori sit in the steaming tub. </p><p>“Can you stay with me?” The brunette asked, near tears. She felt guilty, embarrassed and ashamed. She truly didn’t deserve the gentleness Clarke was giving to her at the moment. </p><p>“Of course. I have nowhere else to be Baby.” Clarke answered gently, grabbing the footstool under the sink and sitting down next to the tub. </p><p>The two sat for a while, and the hot bath was working. Emori didn’t feel as cold anymore, but the warm water was making her tired. She wondered how long she’d have to soak until Clarke deemed her warm enough to go to bed. </p><p>“Miss Clarke?” </p><p>“Yes Baby?” </p><p>“Are you angry at me for disobeying you?” </p><p>“I’m not angry. I am disappointed that you decided to disobey me, but I am not angry at you. I think I understand why you did it too.” </p><p>“You do?” </p><p>“You were cooped up the whole day with only me and John as company. Plus, it was raining all day and I know how easily you get tempted by mud puddles. Puddles that would have otherwise dried up by morning.” </p><p>“Miss Clarke...how’d you know?” </p><p>“I know <em> you </em> Emori. It didn’t take me long to put the puzzle together after I got all the pieces. I swear I know you and John better than you both give me credit for.” </p><p>After a beat of silence, Emori looked to Clarke. “I was hoping you’d be ok with it when you found out.” </p><p>“Okay with it? Emori where’d you get that idea from?” </p><p>“Well when I first went out, it wasn’t raining. But I know you like it when John and I get fresh air. And the air was really fresh.” </p><p>There was a moment of silence before Clarke burst into laughter. </p><p>“Emori, my sweet, sweet girl.” She said, before chuckling again. “It may be true that I like when you appreciate nature and get all the good fresh air your lungs can hold, but not after bedtime, in the rain and cold.” </p><p>“Yes Miss Clarke.” Emori said quietly. </p><p>“I was thinking ten more minutes, then I’ll put you in your jammies and then I’ll give you a snacky doodle before bedtime.” Clarke said, sounding all caring and gentle. </p><p>“But I already ate dinner. And you said naughty girls get early bedtime and no dessert earlier.” </p><p>“Emori, this isn’t about your behavior right now. This is about warming you up and having you take in more calories since you shivered all of them out of your body when you were outside.” </p><p>“Oh.” Emori said, remembering that even though Clarke didn’t work with Jackson in the medical facility, she still had knowledge around health and she was a medic in the early days on Earth. </p><p>“I was thinking a small serving of macaroni, three chocolate chip cookies, a mug of hot chocolate and then a cup of tea to make you sleepy.” </p><p>“That’s a lot to drink before bed. What if I have a you know, a stress response?” Emori asked, hoping Clarke would get the implication and she wouldn’t have to embarrassingly spell it out to her dominant. </p><p>“Baby, why would you have a stress response? Are you worried about something?” </p><p>Emori only nodded, but looked down, fixing her eyes on the little drain plug in the bathtub. </p><p>“Baby, what are you worried about?” </p><p>“What’s gonna happen if I have a stress response tonight?” </p><p>“Are you talking about a pukey tummy and bedwetting, or just specifically the wetting?” Clarke asked, remembering that Emori only mentioned the amount of the drinks. </p><p>“Wetting.” The brunette mumbled, clearly embarrassed and ashamed. No matter how many times Clarke told her she’d never ever be punished for accidents, it still bothered her. It didn’t matter if she wasn’t around other kids often growing up. She still knew that there was an age where having accidents at night was normal, and then also an age where it was babyish and unacceptable. Emori often felt humiliated because she knew she was a normal kid in that regard. Before the Year Three Disaster on The Ring, she couldn’t even remember the last time she went to the bathroom in her pants. Now though, it seemed like any time she went through anything from a minor inconvenience to a massive panic attack, she, and the bedsheets for that matter, were at risk of being soiled the following night. </p><p>And she hated it. </p><p>“Well, no matter what kind of stress response you have, if you even have one, John and I won’t be angry at you and you know I’ll clean you up right away and take care of you. Just like always. Emori, I will never ever punish you for getting a sick tummy or having an accident. You know this.” </p><p>“I hate when it happens. It makes me like a baby.” </p><p>“Honey, you know John and I have never said that you’re a baby because of your stress responses. We have never, and will never feel that way.” </p><p>“But I know you think it.” Emori said sourly, thinking back to a few months ago, before everyone moved out of the farmhouse and there were people everywhere. </p><p>She remembered when Clarke had to walk through the kitchen with soiled sheets one morning and Bellamy had made a passing remark about how Clarke should really ‘invest in diapers’, and to make matters worse, Jackson took the remark seriously and told Clarke that he had cloth diapers at the medical center. </p><p>Considering she was sitting at the island with Murphy and Echo at the time, Emori nearly melted onto the floor and died from embarrassment at that. </p><p>Most importantly, she remembered the look on Clarke’s face when it was mentioned, the look she always got when she was considering something. </p><p>“Is this about what Bellamy said a few months ago?” Clarke asked, because of course she would know right away what Emori was referring to. </p><p>“Yes Ma’am.” Emori grumbled, not wanting to talk about it anymore, but knowing they had to. She couldn’t have these hard feelings anymore; it’d just add more stress and make things worse. </p><p>“I don’t think I’ve ever told you before, but before the first Praimfaya, it was common for adults who had bladder problems to wear diapers. Although, they were called incontinence underwear back then and made with better, more discreet materials. The thing is Emori, I don’t know how bladder problems were treated on the ground after Praimfaya, but there was a time where it was ok for adults to wear diapers too, not just babies.” </p><p>“Really?” </p><p>“Really. There were so many medical helpers, let’s say, that helped improve people’s lives for all sorts of issues. And there’s nothing wrong with utilizing certain things from the past if we feel that we need them. Now, I would never force you to wear diapers, or any other type of clothing that you don’t want to. That’s one of my rules, in this relationship you never have to do anything that you don’t want to do, within reason, and that includes not wearing clothes you don’t want to wear. And even if down the line, you did want to use some sort of protection, it would never make you a baby. John and I would never treat you as such and since we live alone, it’d be kept a big secret if that’s how you wanted.” </p><p>Emori nodded in understanding, and Clarke smiled. </p><p>“Now, why are you worried about stress responses tonight? Maybe we can talk about it and work through it so nothing happens.” </p><p>“I’m just afraid, since you’re postponing my punishment until tomorrow, I am afraid of what it’s going to be.” </p><p>“Oh, I see.” Clarke said, nodding in understanding. “Would it make you feel better if we discuss your punishment tonight, while you’re having your snack, and then that way tomorrow, we can do a quick review and the checklist, and then we just get it over with?” </p><p>Emori nodded, liking that idea. That way she didn’t have to worry about dreading a punishment she had no clue about all night. </p><p>“Alright. Let’s get you dried and dressed. Then we’ll have our talk in the kitchen.” Clarke said, draining the tub and grabbing a fluffy towel to dry her girlfriend off with. </p><p>After drying Emori off, Clarke helped her put on some underwear before grabbing a pair of flannel long underwear, or a Union Suit, as John once called them, and finished the outfit off with a flannel nightgown and a pair of thick, warm socks. </p><p>“You really are pulling out all the stops to keep me warm.” Emori noted, and Clarke smiled. </p><p>“Flu season is already coming up; I really don’t want you getting sick more than you have to.” </p><p>Emori nodded in understanding and once she was all dressed, Clarke brushed and dried her hair, before putting it up in pigtail braids. </p><p>“Alright Baby Girl. Let’s go see about that snack.” Clarke said quietly, smiling when she saw Emori sleepily blink her eyes and yawn. They had to work fast before she fell asleep.  </p><p>“Is someone a sleepy girl?” She cooed, thinking about how cute Emori looked. To Clarke, John and Emori were at their cutest when they were sleepy and this night was no exception. </p><p>“Uh huh.” Emori agreed, her eyelids drooping slightly. Clarke smiled at her girlfriend and led her down to the kitchen.  </p><p>“So, let’s talk about your punishment.” Clarke said quietly, putting a small plate of cookies in front of Emori and putting the water kettle on to boil. She also grabbed the macaroni and started to make the meal for her. </p><p>“Since you broke early bedtime rules, I think having early bedtime for an entire week would be appropriate. For going outside without permission, I know you don’t like them, but I think I need to spank you Baby.” Clarke said slowly, looking at Emori to gauge her reaction. </p><p>Emori looked a bit apprehensive, and Clarke knew why. Emori absolutely hated getting spanked. It wasn’t a hard limit or anything, but she still didn’t enjoy it. </p><p>“Are you going to paddle me?” Emori asked, wondering how severe this spanking would be. </p><p>“I wasn’t planning on it Baby. Why? Do you want me to paddle you?” </p><p>“No!” </p><p>“Ok, then I won’t.” Clarke said quietly, smiling at her girlfriend. “Do those sound like acceptable punishments Emori?”  </p><p>“Yes Ma’am.” The brunette quietly said, before grabbing one of the cookies to eat. Even though she did hate being punished, she knew she deserved some sort of consequences for misbehaving. </p><p>“Alright. Then it’s decided. Hopefully you won’t worry too much now when you go to sleep tonight.” </p><p>A half hour later, Emori was finished with her snack and she was having a hard time with keeping her eyes open. She was so sleepy in fact, that Clarke had to brush her teeth for her and carry her to bed. Clarke tucked her in next to John and joined them soon after she got ready for bed herself. </p><p>The next day was horrible. </p><p>It started right off the bat that way. Clarke had to wake both Emori and John up at 7:30 because Emori had a massive accident, getting all three of them wet with pee. Neither Clarke or John were upset, but Emori was humiliated, and refused to even look at them or talk to them during the clean-up. To make matters worse, Tug Tug had gotten hit, so in a time when Emori needed them for comfort, Clarke had to take them away to wash. The dominant didn’t care how much Emori wanted the towel, she was not letting her submissive put something wet with pee next to her face. Clarke hated having to take away Tug Tug, and it was necessary to keep Emori healthy. </p><p>Emori obviously didn’t want to understand and she had a massive meltdown over it, kicking and screaming, with big fat tears rolling down her cheeks. John had to sit on the floor with her, wrapping his arms and legs around her to keep her secure, because when Clarke tried to pick her up and calm her down, the brunette shoved against her, angry at Clarke over something that she didn’t want to understand. </p><p>Because of this, it was up to John to provide comfort. Clarke felt horrible, and immensely guilty, because the last thing she wanted to do was hurt Emori, but there was no doubt about it, she had to wash Tug Tug. </p><p>Breakfast was a disaster, Emori refused to eat what Clarke put in front of her and even dumped her eggs on the floor. John had to make oatmeal after he ate, and he even had to spoon feed Emori, because while she didn’t dump John’s food on the floor, she still refused to eat it herself. </p><p>A few hours later, Tug Tug was clean, and it took a few more hours after that for Emori to mellow out enough for Clarke to bring up the punishment they agreed upon the night prior. </p><p>“Emori, can you come here?” Clarke asked, after giving John a movie to watch in the basement, so she could deal with Emori in private. </p><p>The two were in the living room and Clarke pulled Emori on to her lap so they could cuddle a bit on the couch. Emori of course, had Tug Tug in her arms and she seemed a bit apprehensive. </p><p>"Miss Clarke, I'm sorry for being a brat at breakfast today, and for everything earlier too."</p><p>“It’s ok Baby. I understand. You weren’t expecting to have a big accident last night, especially with how big yours was, and then add in the fact that you couldn’t have Tug Tug made you very overwhelmed. You will not be getting any consequences for this morning; however, I need you to promise me that you’ll be more understanding in the future. You know that I will never ever take Tug Tug away as a punishment, so when I do take Tug Tug away, please know that it’s for a good reason.” </p><p>“Yes Ma’am.” Emori said, snuggling close. </p><p>“Now. About your punishments for last night. Are you still ok with early bedtime for a week and a spanking today?” </p><p>Emori was quiet, and Clarke could tell something was wrong. </p><p>“Emmy?” </p><p>“No.” </p><p>“No? Ok, so let’s renegotiate then. If you aren’t comfortable anymore, that’s ok.” </p><p>“No. I mean, I don’t think I need a punishment at all. I really didn’t do anything all that bad really.” </p><p>“......I beg your pardon?” Clarke asked, not believing what she was hearing. Not once has she ever dealt with this before. Neither Emori or John had refused to comply with a punishment before, especially one that was negotiated beforehand.  </p><p>“You blew it out of proportion. I don’t think I deserve a punishment today.” Emori said, with a tone a little too sassy for Clarke’s liking. </p><p>“Emori you broke rules yesterday. You absolutely deserve a punishment.” Clarke said after a moment of contemplation. “Since you only said no before because you didn’t want anything at all, we’re going through with early bedtime for a week and a spanking. I will not be disrespected in my own home.” She finished sternly, gently pushing Emori off her lap. </p><p>“Pull your pants and undies down and get over my lap.” The dominant said in a tone that told Emori not to test her. </p><p>“But we didn’t do the checklist.” Emori whispered, realizing she might have screwed up. </p><p>“We’ll do it when you’re in position. You can even hold Tug Tug this time around if you want.” </p><p>Emori stood still, thinking about it. What Clarke just offered was kinda big. She usually didn’t allow Tug Tug or any types of comfort objects during a punishment. She always wanted Emori and John to focus on why they were being punished and on the punishment itself. The brunette then realized that if Clarke was allowing Tug Tug, that meant she was about to get her ass beat. </p><p>“No.” Emori said quietly, not wanting to comply. She still believed that what she did wasn’t all that serious and didn’t warrant a spanking. Early bedtime, sure, she could live with that for the week, but Raven and Echo were supposed to come back over for another movie night tonight and Emori really didn’t want to be squirming on a sore bottom in front of them.  </p><p>“Emori. Now Baby.” Clarke said again, trying to be gentle, but steadily losing her patience. </p><p>“NO, YOU STUPID BITCH! YOU’RE WANHEDA SO YOU KILL EVERYTHING YOU TOUCH! YOU’LL KILL ME!” Emori screamed, startling Clarke. </p><p>“Emori......” </p><p>“I HATE YOU, YOU STUPID ASS.”  </p><p>Clarke just sat there, trying to ignore the fuzzy feeling of her anxiety creeping forward. She hated being called Wanheda. It triggered her, because it reminded her of why she got the title in the first place. She killed all of the Mountain Men, all the friends trying to help on the inside, all the babies. Being called Wanheda had the potential to push Clarke into a panic attack and because of this, the title was banned in both the house and the compound.  </p><p>Emori used it purposefully to hurt her. </p><p>And it was working. </p><p>Clarke could feel a panic attack coming to the forefront so instead of going through with the punishment that she had planned; she left the living room and went upstairs to the second floor. A few minutes later, she came back holding a ball gag. </p><p>“You know what being called Wanheda does to me. You used your words to hurt me, so I am taking your ability to use your words away.” She explained, fastening the gag around Emori’s head. Now the submissive couldn’t speak and essentially hurt Clarke more. </p><p>A little rougher than what was needed, Clarke pulled Emori into the entry way and sat her on a little stool specifically made for timeouts. </p><p>“Keep facing the corner and I’ll come get you in a half hour. Use this hand bell if you need to safe word, I’ll come and take the gag out.” Clarke explained, placing the little bell on the floor. “I really hope you use this time to think about what you’ve done. I am very disappointed in you Emori.” </p><p>With that, Clarke left the entry and went up to the bedroom, to try and calm herself so the panic attack threatening to come could subside. </p><p>As Clarke was leaving, Emori mumbled something from behind the gag but it was so muffled that Clarke didn’t even turn around to acknowledge it. And it was a good thing too because what Emori was trying to say was purely disrespectful and would have only hurt Clarke more. </p><p>Of course, Clarke couldn’t catch a break because it just seemed like fate had this day being bad from start to finish, so it wasn’t all that surprising when she heard what sounded like struggling from the entry way. She had to cut her calm down session short and wasn’t at all surprised when she walked down the stairs and saw Emori trying to reach behind her and undo the ball gag. </p><p>“Emori, if you needed to call red, I told you to ring the bell.” She said calmly, though some could argue that Emori didn’t deserve the calmness and grace Clarke was giving her. </p><p>Once the ball gag was undone, Clarke checked Emori over, knowing that for the most part, when her submissives called red, it meant they were on a verge of a panic attack. </p><p>Emori however, was fine. She was angry, but there was nothing going on that had her needing her safe word. </p><p>“I can’t believe you gagged me!” The brunette yelled. “I fucking hate you! I wish you were never my dominant!” She finished and that last part caused Clarke to stand up straighter. </p><p>“Ok.” Was all she said, looking down at her feet. </p><p>“Ok? What do you mean ok?” </p><p>“We can try it. I won’t be your dominant for three days, to see how it feels. At the end of those three days we can reconvene, and if you still feel how you do now, I won’t be your dominant anymore, but if you feel differently, we can pick back up to our dominant/submissive relationship like nothing happened. From now on, for the next three days, you’ll have to make many choices by yourself. You’ll still be my girlfriend, and I will treat you as such with love and respect but all the cutesy fun stuff you experienced as my submissive, I won’t do it anymore. You’ll have to set your own schedule, make your own food, be productive during the day, all that stuff. Is that ok with you?” </p><p>“Set my own schedule?” Emori asked, confused. It was then that she realized how hard Clarke worked to take care of her and John, and she might have made the wrong choice. </p><p>“You’re an adult Emori. That means you’ll need to wake yourself up, make your own meals, do productive and helpful stuff throughout the day, find time to take a shower and you’ll have to put yourself to bed at whatever time you think is appropriate. I still have John to take care of, and if you don’t want me to take care of you, then I couldn’t care less about where you are or what you’re doing. You made your bed, now lie in it.” Clarke finished, walking away from Emori and going down to the movie area to check on John. </p><p>As Clarke walked away, Emori realized that she might have screwed up something special for no reason. She remembered what Clarke had said, about being helpful, so she wandered around the house looking for something to do, to hopefully show Clarke that she was sorry. She didn’t want Clarke to stop being her dominant, she already knew that right away, but she had to get through the next three days to serve out the punishment Clarke had planned. </p><p>She worked around the house for most of the day, wanting to help Clarke with the odds and ends, running the dishwasher, taking care of the light colored and dark colored clothes that had to get washed and dried, before going on to take care of the towels in the same way.  </p><p>A few hours later, while she was folding the towels, Clarke and John came up to start making dinner. </p><p>“Thank you for helping clean up, Emori.” Clarke said gratefully, seeing that the dishwasher was running and the laundry was just about done. </p><p>“No problem at all.” The brunette said, not even minding. She liked doing housework during the day, especially if she needed to clear her head. Today was one of those days.  </p><p>“When you’re done putting the towels away, can you set the table for dinner? And put out two extra place settings? Echo and Raven should be over in fifteen minutes.” </p><p>“Sure thing.”  </p><p>Dinner went by smoothly and Raven and Echo never would have guessed how much of a disaster the day was before they came. After eating, John got special permission from Clarke to go to the tavern and hang out with Bellamy and Miller for the evening so it was just the girls at the farmhouse. </p><p>Emori had offered to wash the dishes so while she did that, Clarke, Echo, and Raven settled in the little sitting room to catch up. It was clear that Clarke had told the two about the events of the morning and afternoon, because as Emori made her way to the sitting room to join them, she stopped and hid behind the wall, to listen in. </p><p>“Are you sure that was a good idea Clarke?” </p><p>“What do you mean Raven?” </p><p>“Well Emori and John have very different relationships with you. On one hand, John knew you before he became your submissive and after. Emori’s only really ever known you as her dominant. Are you sure it’s a good idea to take that away from her?” </p><p>“It won’t be for a long time, only three days. It’s more of an experiment to see if it’s really what she wants. I honestly don’t think she meant what she said, but she also needs to learn that no matter what kind of relationship we have with each other, respect is a must and the kind of behavior she showed today is not allowed ever.” </p><p>“I know it’s only been a few hours but have you noticed it working?” Echo asked, worried about Emori. </p><p>“She’s been my very big helper the past few hours, helping with cleaning and such but I’m not sure. It’s too soon to see.” </p><p>“Why do you think she behaved so badly today?” </p><p>“Well, to be truthful about it, she’s stunted, emotionally. I do not mean it in a bad way, but she is stunted.” </p><p>“What does that mean?” Echo asked, never having heard the term before. </p><p>“Because Emori didn’t grow up in a normal village, and never had parents, or the chance to be a child, she never learned proper ways to handle her emotions or process them in a healthy way. When she gets overwhelmed, all the feelings bubble up and then she explodes. Emori being stunted basically means that there were circumstances in her life that prevented her from developing in ways more in line with the children her age. And then as she got older, she was stuck with what she learned and I am not sure how to help her catch up. There’s no way around the fact that she is not capable of coping properly in certain situations.” </p><p>“But does she need to catch up? I mean, she seems fine.” Raven said. </p><p>“You guys don’t see this side of Emori, but when she gets sick or is in more vulnerable situations like with nightmares or stress responses, or if something goes wrong, she tends to act more regressive.” </p><p>“Like with Tug Tug?” </p><p>“Yeah, but also in other ways as well. I have noticed that Emori looks at me differently in the past few months.” </p><p>“Differently how?” </p><p>“Well, in some situations, I don’t think she looks at me like I’m Miss Clarke anymore. She looks at me like I’m her mother.” </p><p>“Well Clarke, with all due respect, you are the authority figure in your relationship. You are the closest thing to a loving mother that Emori’s ever had. And since she never had a mother, she may not even realize that she sees you that way.” </p><p>“I suppose you’re right.” Clarke said, not thinking of that perspective. </p><p>“And you’ve joked about it before, saying that Emori and John are the only babies you could ever want.” </p><p>“Yeah, but that was only a joke. We’ve talked about it before and if we get to a point where these two have moved past their traumas, we’ve talked about having real babies before.” </p><p>“And you don’t think you can do that if Emori sees you as Mama.” Raven said, finishing Clarke’s thought. </p><p>“Exactly.” </p><p>“Clarke, I hope this doesn’t come off as offensive, because I don’t mean it like that, but for the past seven years now, you’ve been Emori’s dom. And for the most part, she’s been relying on you for everything. I do think a big part of her acting like a baby, or regressive as you’ve called it, is because you treat her like a baby.” </p><p>“I don’t treat her like a baby Raven.” </p><p>“You wake her up in the mornings, help her pick out her outfits, make her breakfast, have her do childish activities or let her play during the day, you make her lunch and dinner, you give her baths almost every night and even if she does shower, you help her, and then you tuck her in with a bedtime story before she goes to sleep. I know it’s your job as her dominant to take care of her, but taking care of her needs and keeping her safe and happy is one thing, and coddling her is another.” </p><p>“Well, depending on how she feels in a few days, maybe we can switch it up a bit. If she wants to be my sub again, maybe we can come up with a plan that focuses on helping her with her emotions and helping her come up with better coping mechanisms.” </p><p>“You should do that.” Raven said, with Echo nodding in agreement.  </p><p>“And Clarke, I know we haven’t had the time or the paper to do this in the past but I think it’d be best for you to write down contracts for the two. So, you can have a collection of what their safe words are, what their hard limits are, individual rules that they have to follow, any allergies they have, if they take medication, what do they need, lists of things that they love and hate, a whole collection of written instructions on how to take care of them the best way possible.” Echo suggested. Raven taught her about dom/sub relationships on The Ring and before apocalypse 1, many in those types of relationships utilized contracts. </p><p>“That’s a good idea Echo. That way we won’t fuck up if something happens to Clarke again.” Raven agreed, and Clarke nodded. </p><p>“I’ll definitely sit down with both of them and record everything that is needed to know.” She said, knowing that if anything ever happened to her again, Raven would step up, with Echo helping or taking over if Raven couldn’t. </p><p>It already happened twice before. The first time, when Clarke was taken by Mount Weather, Raven knew that Bellamy would probably try to kill Murphy if he saw him by himself. Murphy had been Clarke’s responsibility at the drop ship and with Clarke presumed dead at the time, Raven knew John wasn’t safe, so she became his temporary dominant, keeping him safe and out of trouble, utilizing the same exact practices that Clarke did, no matter if she agreed with them or not. When John found Emori in the woods by herself and got her introduced to the idea of the type of relationship he and Clarke had, Raven took on the girl as a new charge, ready to take care of her even if Clarke declined. This of course was all a big if at the time. Until Clarke came back to Camp Jaha, they all assumed she and everyone else that had gone missing, were dead. </p><p>Raven was all set to fill Clarke’s shoes and take Murphy and Emori in on her own, just to protect the first from Bellamy, and the second from outside threats that wanted her dead because of her hand. </p><p>After Clarke came back and found out that Raven had taken care of her boy without asking, and took on a new girl while at it, she automatically took Emori in and gave Raven special permission to help out from time to time if needed. For the most part, that meant if Raven ever caught Emori or John misbehaving or breaking rules, she could punish them if Clarke was not there to do it herself. Up on The Ring, Echo was given the same privileges after the Year 3 Disaster, and both John and Emori seemed to always behave better when Raven and Echo were around. </p><p>Because while Clarke’s spankings hurt, Raven and Echo’s hurt even worse. </p><p>The second time Raven, and now Echo took care of the two in Clarke’s place was when Russel body snatched her and put Josephine in her brain. Those few days were complicated because while they thought Clarke was dead, her body was still there, and Echo could tell that it had bothered John immensely, seeing his dominant’s body but knowing she was no longer in there. It bothered Emori too but after the first two days, Echo had been disappointed to see the two trying to help Josephine kill Clarke once and for all and she was about ready to throw both of them over her knee in the middle of the tavern for it, but luckily they were able to work with Bellamy and some of the Sanctumites and Clarke had been saved. </p><p>“Well, I hope everything goes well for you.” Raven said to Clarke. </p><p>“And if you ever need us to help you out with anything, don’t hesitate to ask.” Echo added, giving Clarke a smile. The blonde nodded and gave both friends a smile, and that was when Emori decided to walk into the room. </p><p>“Hey, thanks for doing the dishes Em.” Clarke said, smiling at Emori like nothing had happened a few hours prior. </p><p>“No problem. Hey, I’m kinda tired. I think I’m gonna go to bed.” </p><p>“It’s only 7:15 Em. Are you feeling ok?” Clarke asked, cocking her head to the side and looking at Emori closely. </p><p>“I’m fine. Just a bit tired.” </p><p>“Ok. Sleep well Babe.” </p><p>“Actually, Clarke?” </p><p>Clarke raised her eyebrows, a cue for Emori to continue. </p><p>“I think I need some time alone tonight. I’m going to sleep in one of the guest rooms tonight.” </p><p>“Whatever is best for you Em. Good night. I love you.” </p><p>“I love you too.” Emori said, before waving to Echo and Raven, and going up the stairs to the bedroom she wanted to use. </p><p>The three girls talked for about two more hours before John came back from the tavern, tired and ready to get ready for bed. After Raven and Echo left, Clarke brought him upstairs to get him ready for bed. He was being extra cuddly and close with Clarke tonight, and she could tell that he had a smidge to drink. </p><p>John was only allowed two drinks at the tavern max because while Clarke wanted him to be able to make his own choices and have fun with his friends, she didn’t want him to overdo it with the alcohol. His mother was an alcoholic and Clarke did not want him following his mom’s path. Especially since that path contributed to domestic violence, abuse and neglect during John’s childhood. </p><p>Still two drinks were enough to get John silly, and extra cuddly, but not enough for him to get over the top drunk or deal with hangovers the day after. </p><p>“Miss Clarke, have I ever told you how pretty you are?” He asked, before giving Clarke a big sloppy kiss on the cheek. </p><p>“Yes Baby. Many, many times.” She said, wiping off the kiss when he wasn’t looking. As much as she liked Murphy kisses, she did not want his spit on her cheek. </p><p>The two were in the bathroom at the time, and Clarke was dressing John in his pajamas after a shower. He was a teeny bit tipsy and needed help, but Clarke didn’t mind at all. </p><p>“Where’s ‘Mori?” He asked once they arrived in the bedroom, disappointed to see the bed empty. </p><p>“Emmy wanted some extra space tonight. She’s sleeping in one of the guest bedrooms.” </p><p>“But I wanted to cuddle her.” John pouted; eyes gleaming with tears. </p><p>“Oh Baby, you can cuddle Emori tomorrow. You need to go to bed.” </p><p>“But I want Emori!” </p><p>“I’m sorry Sweetie, I guess you’ll have to settle for me.” </p><p>John didn’t say anything else after that, since he was starting to get sleepy, so he let Clarke tuck him in without a fuss. The blonde joined him in bed shortly after, since there wasn’t anything left for her to do and she didn’t really want to be alone either. </p><p>The next morning, everything changed. </p><p>Emori woke up early, around 4:30 am, and the first thing she felt was wet. It wasn’t from a stress response though. No, she was sweating bullets. When she threw off the covers she immediately started to shiver, since her clothes were soaked with sweat. She couldn’t get into a comfortable position and she felt heavy and tired, which made moving a chore. Her throat felt rough and scratchy, and her nose was clogged beyond belief. She felt horrible. </p><p>She knew Clarke wouldn’t be up for a few hours so Emori just laid there, not wanting to go in the bedroom and wake up Clarke, or risk waking up John. </p><p>Ten minutes later, exhaustion had taken over and Emori fell asleep again, too tired to wake up again until much later. </p><p>When Emori woke up again, she was extremely confused. She was lying in the bed that she normally shared with Clarke and John, and she was also wearing a completely different outfit than when she went to bed in. Sunlight was flowing through the window, flooding the room with bright daylight. </p><p>Hearing someone walking through the door, she turned and made grabby hands when it was Clarke entering the room. </p><p>“Hey Baby, how are you feeling?” She asked gently, leaning over and feeling Emori’s forehead. </p><p>“Bad.” The brunette rasped, wincing when her throat hurt from speaking. </p><p>“Well, now that you’re up, I’ll go get you some medicine, tea, and soup.” </p><p>“Miss Clarke?” Emori asked, hesitantly. She had no idea if she was allowed to call Clarke by the title or if she was now allowed because she was sick. </p><p>“Yes, Baby Girl?” </p><p>“How?” Emori asked, and Clarke smiled, understanding immediately. Emori was asking how she moved, and how she changed. </p><p>“I checked in on you when I woke up, so around 7:30, and I noticed that you had a tinkle accident again, so I had John help me take care of the bedding. While I was cleaning you up, I noticed that you had a fever, so we moved you in here.” </p><p>“I had an accident?” </p><p>“Yes Baby. It’s ok, I think it has to do with your fever. Sometimes people have potty accidents when they are sick and it has nothing to do with previous or future accidents they might have.” </p><p>“Did I sleep through the whole thing?” </p><p>“No. You were actually awake during the clean-up. You woke up in the bedroom and you stayed awake until I put you back to bed here. You were so feverish though, that I don’t think you’d remember it.” </p><p>“I was?” </p><p>“Yep. You weren’t really talking to me, but you were alert enough to cooperate while I bathed you. Which is surprising considering how much your fever was bothering you. You tried to dunk your head in the bath water a few times so once I got you settled in here, John brought you a cool washcloth for your forehead. We’ve been taking turns rewetting it, and it’s done a good enough job to keep your fever steady.” Clarke said, placing the newly wet cloth across Emori’s forehead. </p><p>“Now that you’re up though, I can give you some medicine to lower your fever.” </p><p>“Miss Clarke? I’m sorry for everything. I’ve been really horrible to you the past few days.” She tried to say, before erupting into a coughing fit. </p><p>“Emori, it’s ok. I forgive you Baby. Now, I know you feel the need to apologize, but I need you to not talk right now. Your throat is sore and I don’t want you to irritate it any longer.” Clarke said, after giving Emori some water. </p><p>“I’m going to get you some medicine, some tea, and some soup.” Clarke said, before kissing Emori on the nose and walking out of the room. </p><p>“John? She’s up. Can you keep her company so she can stay awake?” Clarke asked as she walked down to the kitchen. </p><p>John nodded, because of course he’d keep Emori company, and he went into the bedroom, seeing his girlfriend in bed, looking miserable. She was hugging Tug Tug and just looked tired. </p><p>“Hi Emmy. How are you feeling?” John asked, giving her a kiss on the cheek. </p><p>“Not good.” She said softly, her voice sounding extremely gravelly. </p><p>“Well, just relax and don’t overdo it.” He said, not wanting her to lose her voice.  </p><p>When Clarke came back, she stayed with Emori and fretted over her like she was a mother hen. </p><p>Later in the day, Emori was starting to feel slightly better and she was sipping on some tea that Clarke had made for her, while the blonde sat at her side to watch over her. </p><p>“Miss Clarke?” </p><p>“Yes Baby?” </p><p>“I know it hasn’t even been a day yet, but I want you to be my Dom again for forever.” </p><p>Clarke nodded and smiled at Emori. </p><p>“Well, by the time you’ll be feeling better, the three days will be over anyways. You can be my submissive again if you want Lovely. We’ll have some stuff to talk about, but first and foremost I want you better Baby. But I want you for forever too.”  </p><p>Emori smiled and scooted over, so Clarke could get in the bed too, and the two cuddled close with each other for the rest of the day. </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Never Your Fault</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>One mistake brings up the past.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Murphy came home feeling guilty and upset. He had been at the tavern with Bellamy and Miller, hanging out, and it didn’t end well. He left early and felt horrible. Bellamy had pressured him to have a third drink, though Clarke made a rule of him having only a maximum of two drinks. When he finished it, Bellamy tried to get him to drink a shot, which would be a fourth drink and two over the rules. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy however, refused, and that was when Bellamy decided to start with the insults.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on Murphy, your mom could out drink you any day with that attitude.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hearing that, Murphy had left, cutting the night early and going back to the farm house where Clarke was. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>His mother was an alcoholic, and hearing Bellamy talk about her out drinking him wasn’t funny. Especially when his mother being black out drunk was something that happened very frequently throughout his childhood. It wasn’t really something he wanted to talk about, because it only brought back painful memories, and for Bellamy to bring it up like it’s a joke felt really disrespectful. So yeah, Murphy would rather go home and spend the rest of the evening with Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey John, you’re back early.” Clarke said when he arrived home. It was quiet in the house and she was sitting in the living room, mending a rip in one of Emori’s shirts.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hi Miss Clarke.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hi Baby. Did you have a good time?” She asked, looking up at him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He only shrugged and looked around.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s Emori?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sleeping.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But it’s not even bedtime yet.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She helped out at the school today and she’s really sleepy so we have to keep it down ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John nodded and just stood there. He could feel his guilt sinking lower and lower, and he knew he had to tell Clarke he broke her rules. He honestly didn’t have to, since she probably wouldn’t be able to tell how many drinks he had, but he also felt that omitting information was the same as lying.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I need to talk to you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright.” Clarke said, laying down the shirt entirely and patting the sofa, for Murphy to sit next to her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s up?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I broke a rule.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You broke a rule? What rule did you break?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Bellamy </span>
  <span>kinda</span>
  <span> peer pressured me and I had a third drink. He also tried to get me to have a fourth one but I didn’t.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He kind of peer pressured, or he did peer pressure you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He did. And after I said no to the fourth drink he said ‘That my mom could out drink me.’ I left after that because it made me think of my mom and how I’d find her in her throw up a lot when I came home from school.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded in understanding. “Bellamy had no right to say that to you, or peer pressure you into drinking more when he knows I have a limit for you. I will talk to him tomorrow.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke, I’m really sorry for breaking the rules. Am I going to get in trouble?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I am slightly disappointed because you didn’t have to give in to peer pressure and have that third drink, and I also think you could have left sooner, but all in all, one extra drink isn’t going to kill you. Also, you came to me right away and you were truthful. I am very proud of you for coming clean and letting me know of your wrongdoings. That was very responsible of you John.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Am I going to be punished?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes. The next time you are at the tavern, you will only be allowed one drink, since you had one extra tonight. I also think ten minutes on the timeout chair tomorrow after breakfast will be enough.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Really?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah. I mean, it’s not like you started a fight or anything. Yeah, you broke my rule about two drinks but you also were responsible about telling me afterwards and not taking a fourth drink even with Bellamy pressuring you, so I don’t think we need to do a heavy-duty punishment or anything. Besides, I think there’s something else bothering you.” Clarke said, tilting her head to the side and giving Murphy a soft smile.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why did my mom not love me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Honey, come here.” Clarke said, knowing that this was coming. She opened her arms up, inviting Murphy in and he crawled forward, snuggling up on Clarke’s lap.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like, she didn’t love me, right? If she did, she wouldn’t have drank herself to death. She would have stayed alive for me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, your mother was an addict. She had a disease and to be honest, while the Ark did have good doctors and physical healthcare, mental health resources were lacking. Plus, with the fact that you and your mother lived in a lower social class station, getting resources were a lot harder for her than it would have been for my mom, for example. The Ark’s social system was incredibly unfair, especially for those that needed help the most.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But if she loved me, she would have quit.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, addiction is a tricky topic. Not everyone handles their addictions the same way. My mother was an opioid addict. She was planning on getting clean but she was killed before she could recover fully. Now, I never knew your mom, I never met her, and I only know about her from your stories. I do think though, that deep down, your mother did have some sort of love for you. I completely understand your thinking though Honey. What you had to go through with her was incredibly unfair, especially since you didn’t have your father to help you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s my fault my mom is an alcoholic.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>No,</span>
  <span> it’s not John. No, it’s not.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, it is. If I hadn’t gotten my father killed, she never would have been an abusive drunk.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, first off, your mother neglected you far before your father died. Raven and I were poking around with our medical files on the Ring, and I found yours. When you had contracted the flu at six, your mother waited so long to bring you into the medical center that you got really sick. If she had taken you two or three days earlier, you would have gotten better a lot quicker, without the medicine your dad stole for you. She wasn’t giving you fever reducer, water, anything. And, she didn’t prevent it by taking you for a flu shot. You were six Baby; it was never your fault.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But, if I hadn’t gotten sick, my dad……”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, your father was an adult. He made the decision to steal medicine for you. You had no control over the situation. It is unfair that your father was floated, especially when he was trying to save his son, but Baby, you were a child. It never was and never will be your fault.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I hated the Ark.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, there has to be something that you liked. What about that one neighbor you told me about before. Ryan?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ry. He was my neighbor. He was sixteen when my dad died and when my mom was super drunk, he’d babysit me after school, take me to the cafeteria to get my food rations so she wouldn’t steal it from me. He helped take care of me until I was eleven. Then I was big enough to take care of myself.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It seems like he really helped you out during those years.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He did. I probably would have died without his help.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded. “Well, maybe sometime you should reconnect with him. He made it out of the bunker and was a part of </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span>. He’s here on Sanctum so maybe someday, when you’re ready, you’ll be able to reconnect.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy smiled at that proposition and curled in closer to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What else did you find?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like, in my medical records.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, you were pretty young, maybe four or five so I don’t know if you really remember but you were tested for learning disabilities, and dyslexia was listed, along with the phrase, “additional learning disabilities detected” but there was no confirmed diagnosis for anything other than dyslexia. We have no idea where they originated from, but we do have confirmation that your father, and grandmother from your father’s side were dyslexic, though </span>
  <span>your</span>
  <span> learning disabilities could have come from your mother, since she drank heavily while pregnant with you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She drank while pregnant?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes John. Your mother was an alcoholic before you were born. That’s why I don’t want you blaming yourself for your father’s death or her alcoholism. Do you even know your baby story?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When John shook his head, Clarke nodded. “I’m not really surprised, but your mother’s drinking caused you to have a low birth weight. You were carried to full term but you were only four pounds and two ounces. John, that’s small, half the weight of an average </span>
  <span>full-term</span>
  <span> baby. You had to stay in the Ark’s version of the NICU for a month and a half, and your mother’s blood alcohol level tested high enough where she was barred from seeing you. Your father had to visit every day, and you had to be formula fed. Your mother’s breast milk had high levels of alcohol and it was incredibly unsafe. Considering the circumstances, you could have had it so much worse, and I’m glad that you are doing good now.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, it never really was my fault?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No baby. It never was.” Clarke confirmed, kissing his forehead.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John sat for a while and soaked in all the love and cuddles from Clarke. It was rare when he had an evening alone with her, since Emori was usually with them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve been through a lot today John. How about we go upstairs and give you a shower, then we can go to bed. Does that sound like a plan?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John nodded, so Clarke led him upstairs, going to help him get all cozy for bed.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Our New Normal</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Clarke and Murphy's relationship at the start, in the aftermath of Charlotte's death.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It’s been about three days since the entire disaster involving Murphy’s hanging and Charlotte’s death have happened, and the camp has started to settle down slightly. Because of their agreement, Murphy was safely brought back to camp and put in Clarke’s tent, since she was the one who’d be taking care of him from now on. That’s what Bellamy said, if he spared Murphy, the younger boy would be Clarke’s responsibility. And now he was. </p>
<p>It was mid-morning when Clarke entered the tent, she now shared with him, and saw him lying in his sleeping bag, awake. </p>
<p>“Good morning John.” She said quietly, sitting down next to him. </p>
<p>He only gave her a small smile in response, and she couldn’t blame him. His throat was horribly bruised from the half minute he had the rope around his neck, and his vocal cords also had swelling, making it hard and painful to talk. Clarke was going to work on it with him soon, but she didn’t want to push it until he was fully healed. </p>
<p>“I brought you some breakfast.” She said, holding a bowl with some finely chopped turkey meat, mixed with water. </p>
<p>Murphy looked at the bowl suspiciously, before looking at Clarke with the same expression. </p>
<p>“It is turkey mixed with water, I made it into a paste so it’ll be easier to swallow.” She explained, helping him sit up. </p>
<p>He was still looking at it suspiciously, and Clarke smiled. </p>
<p>“It might not taste the best, but it’s better than nothing.” She added, looking over and grabbing a make shift spoon.  </p>
<p>“No, no, no.” She said gently, when he tried to reach for the bowl. “Let me.” </p>
<p>She stirred it before scooping up a teeny bit and holding the spoon to Murphy’s lips. </p>
<p>He slowly ate, and winced when he swallowed, but he wasn’t whimpering in pain anymore like the morning after. Even if it was slow, he was recovering. </p>
<p>And that fact made Clarke hopeful. </p>
<p>Because they were taking it slow, it took almost an hour for Murphy to eat the turkey paste, a canteen full of water, and a little cup of tea, that Clarke gave him to help his sore throat. </p>
<p>Since Murphy was still recovering, Clarke didn’t want him to be over exerting himself, and she certainly didn’t want him doing anything other than resting. For the past few days, she had been helping him with everything, from feeding and bathing, to making the rare trips out of the tent to the latrine when he had to go to the bathroom. Other than those few trips during the day, Clarke wanted Murphy to stay in the tent. </p>
<p>Since Bellamy had assigned her to be the one in charge of Murphy, she stayed in the tent with him all day, planning on having her only job be to take care of him. That’s what Bellamy had instructed, plus there were almost 100 other people in the camp to help him with tasks so she didn’t believe that he needed her anyway. </p>
<p>She wanted to focus on Murphy. That’s why it came as a big shock when shortly after lunch, Bellamy came barging into the tent in a huff, wanting to talk to Clarke. </p>
<p>“How long are you going to keep hiding here?” </p>
<p>“Um, what the fuck are you talking about? You told me it’s my job and responsibility to watch him. I’m doing what you told me.” </p>
<p>“No, I need you to help me lead. Besides, he should stop being lazy and actually get off his ass and help out in this camp.” </p>
<p>“Lazy? He’s like this because of you, you stupid son of a bitch! You caused this!” </p>
<p>“I caused this? Hate to break it to you Princess, but you’re the one who started this bullshit a few days ago.” </p>
<p>“Maybe it is my fault. Maybe I did start it by rushing things, but I was not the one that kicked the fucking crate from underneath him. You’re the one that allowed hanging as an option. You let the other kids beat him. You beat him! Hitting him hard enough to jostle his neck after he was hanging for half a minute? And then you have the god damn audacity to fucking come in here and call him lazy?” </p>
<p>“I wouldn’t have beat him if he hadn’t tried to go after Charlotte. Anyone that goes after a child is sick.” </p>
<p>“Newsflash Asshole! Murphy’s a child too. I’m a fucking child! We’re all children down here except for you!” </p>
<p>“Oh, so what are you saying? It’s all my fault?” </p>
<p>“Um, yeah! You are morally and legally in charge down here because you are the only legal adult, everything is on you Bellamy! And you don’t get to say that anyone who messes with a child is sick. You fucking tied Atom in a tree for kissing your sister. Octavia isn’t some baby anymore, it’s normal for her to be a teenager and develop feelings for others her age, you can’t just humiliate and abuse any person that your sister might be involved with.” </p>
<p>“That’s different, Clarke if you had a younger sibling, you’d understand.” </p>
<p>“No, I wouldn’t. If I had a younger sibling, I would be protective of course, there’s nothing wrong with that, but I wouldn’t fucking control them like they were my own personal doll. I think you get some sick enjoyment over having control over Octavia. Is that it? Are you on such a power trip that having control over absolutely everyone is the only way you can live? Fucking pathetic if you ask me.” </p>
<p>Bellamy opened his mouth to speak, but Clarke was amused when no words came out. Since he wasn’t saying anything, she decided to cut in, and finish off with saying what she thought was the real problem in this camp. </p>
<p>“And to top it all off, that whatever the hell we want bullshit will never fly. Because one thing someone wants, could hurt everyone else. You’re shit at leading and it would have been better for all of us if your selfish ass had stayed on the Ark. Now get the fuck out of my tent.” She seethed, pointing to the door. </p>
<p>Bellamy was so shocked at Clarke’s outburst that he left the tent without another word, though he did give Murphy a death glare as he left. Clarke could tell that the younger boy was scared stiff at what that look could mean, so she rubbed his back and immediately started to comfort him. </p>
<p>“It’s ok John. I promise I’ll do everything I can to make sure he won’t ever hurt you. Or anyone else in the camp for that matter.” She reassured, happy that her efforts seemed to cause him to relax a bit. </p>
<p>“Now, that’s enough excitement for one day I suppose, I think it’d be best if you took a nap. I’ll be here for you the whole time, I promise.” She said, helping him settle down. </p>
<p>The rest of the day wasn’t that eventful. After his nap, Murphy rested with Clarke for the afternoon and she took some time to get to know him, asking basic questions about his life, what station he grew up on, what his favorite color was, what are his major likes and dislikes. She had him write his answers on a spare notepad, and she verbally shared her answers to the same questions so he could also learn about her as well. Clarke had plans with what she wanted her relationship with Murphy to be like once he was better, but it’d have to wait until he recovered before she talked about it in depth. </p>
<p>What Clarke wanted to do was start a new dynamic with Murphy, and engage in a nonsexual dom/sub relationship with him, to give him love and structure, things he clearly wasn’t used to having. She needed someone to take care of, and he needed someone to take care of him. It was a perfect match. Plus, Clarke felt it’d do her some good, having someone special to look after, especially after being in solitary confinement with little to no human contact in those months after her arrest. From the day of the hanging, Murphy became hers, and as far as she was concerned, he’d be hers until the day they died. </p>
<p>After supper, Clarke undressed Murphy and used a cloth and fresh water to bathe him, before putting him in fresh clothes and tucking him in for the night. About two hours after he fell asleep however, their peaceful night became less peaceful. </p>
<p>Clarke wasn’t really that tired yet, so she was sitting up in the tent, keeping an eye out for Murphy, who was snuggled up in his sleeping bag. It wasn’t until she started to hear strained whimpers coming from Murphy when she scooted closer, to see what was wrong. Since it was hard for him to talk, Clarke didn’t realize he was having a nightmare until she got closer and saw him still asleep. About five seconds later he woke up, tears rolling down his cheeks. </p>
<p>“Oh John, it was just a nightmare. You’re safe, I’m right here.” She reassured, rubbing his back as he tried to calm down. </p>
<p>She paused when she saw Murphy slowly rub his neck bruises, grimacing as he did so. </p>
<p>“No. No touch John. They’re still tender.” She gently admonished, grabbing Murphy’s hands and bringing them forward to kiss them. </p>
<p>He still looked scared, and after seeing him touch his neck, Clarke could guess why. </p>
<p>“Did you have a nightmare about what happened with Charlotte?” She asked, knowing that entire day was filled with multiple traumatic moments. </p>
<p>John nodded, and Clarke sighed. She knew this would probably stick with Murphy for the rest of his life, and it would especially be bad now, while it’s still fresh in his mind. </p>
<p>“Oh John, Honey, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let any of this happen. I feel like it’s all my fault. But we can’t change the past so I want you to know that you don’t have to be scared. I will make sure nothing bad happens to you.” </p>
<p>“Bellamy.” Murphy rasped, talking for the first time since Charlotte died. His voice sounded horrible, and from the look on his face, Clarke could tell it wasn’t comfortable yet to speak. </p>
<p>“Shhhh. No speaking until the swelling goes down a bit. Now Bellamy had no right to do what he did to you, and I promise I will do everything I can to make sure he never bothers you. Ok?” </p>
<p>John nodded and Clarke smiled. “Good. Now, let’s settle back down. I’ll lay with you.” She said, getting Murphy settled again in his sleeping bag. She got down into hers and then pulled him close, pressing his head against her chest so he could fall asleep to her heart beat. </p>
<p>“Go to sleep John. I’ll be here when you wake up.” She said gently, smiling and rubbing his back as she watched him relax, and then as his eyes slowly closed, for the rest of the quiet night. </p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Unjust</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A lie from Murphy causes Emori to be punished for something she didn't do.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Clarke was sitting in her office at the farm house doing work one day when she heard a loud crash come from the living room. She got up, and left, shocked to see Emori and John standing in front of the fireplace, looking about ready to cry.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The large flatscreen tv that had hung over the mantle was on the floor, shattered glass everywhere.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What in the world happened in here?” She asked, though, upon seeing the remote on the floor, she could start to piece the story together.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was an accident!” Emori said, hot tears rolling down her face.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you two hurt?” She asked them, the question being the most important to her. Before she decided on any disciplinary actions, she had to make sure her Loves weren’t hurt.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No Miss Clarke.” They both said, not looking at her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. I need to get you out of that glass. Do not move, do you understand?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span> nodded, and Clarke carefully walked over, picking Emori up and carrying her out of the broken glass, before sitting her on the couch. She then went back and did the same to John, before going to get the broom to sweep the glass up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once the mess was all cleaned up and everything was safe, it was time to discuss what happened.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, so can you please enlighten me on what happened?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was all Emori’s fault!” John said, and Emori’s eyes went wide at the accusation.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, it’s not!” She sputtered, not believing that John would throw her under the bus like that.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, it is, I was watching a movie and she tried to change the channel! Then she grabbed the remote from me and it flew into the tv!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori…….is that true?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I did touch the remote, but I didn’t grab it from him! I didn’t try to change the channel!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke, she’s lying!” John shouted. “She grabbed it!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fighting over the god damn remote.” Clarke muttered, shaking her head.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I want you two to look at me.” She said after a moment of contemplation.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once she had eye contact, she continued. “I want you to tell me, ‘I did not start this.’ Right now.” She ordered. She had a plan. Both Emori and John had a tell, certain ways for Clarke to know when they were lying, and they had no idea that she knew.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I did not start this.” Both said, though while John looked into Clarke’s eyes and spoke clearly, Emori refused to make eye contact, and her voice wobbled.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke sighed. Though she had never seen Emori act like this before, it wasn’t her making eye contact or keeping her voice steady, like John did that made her suspect that she wasn’t being truthful. The only conclusion Clarke could come to was that Emori was lying.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, I am very disappointed in you. Go up to our bedroom, now. John make yourself useful.” Clarke ordered, and she saw Emori’s expression turn to one of devastation.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The truth was, Emori did nothing wrong. She did grab the remote, but only to turn the volume of the movie up. Not to change the channel. John had expected the worst and he ripped the remote out her hands, flinging it into the tv himself. He lied and threw Emori under the bus to save himself from consequences and now Emori was going to be punished for nothing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori didn’t say anything though, because she knew arguing with Clarke once she made up her mind was useless, and would probably only add to whatever punishment Clarke was planning.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori sat on the bed and waited, dreading the upcoming half hour. She hated punishments, and the fact that she was in trouble for something she didn’t do made her stomach twist up into knots even more than usual.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, you lied to me and you know the rules </span>
  <span>Em</span>
  <span>. Liars get soap in their mouths.” Clarke started, setting a new bar of soap on the dresser. “I also feel that you need to be paddled, for continuously lying to me. Do you consent?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” Emori said in a monotone, not even caring anymore. Emotionally, she felt betrayed, and wanted to get this punishment over with so she could deal with it by herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you tell me why you’re getting punished today?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“For breaking the tv. And lying about it.” Emori said in the same monotone. She felt her heart swell up with shame when she said it, because in reality, she was actually lying at this point. She didn’t do anything wrong but was forced to lie to say what Clarke wanted to hear.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what have we chosen as a punishment?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Paddling and mouth soaping.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are your </span>
  <span>safe words</span>
  <span> and what is the rule regarding </span>
  <span>safe words</span>
  <span>?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green for go, yellow for break, red for stop. I can use my words whenever I need.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What is the rule regarding aftercare?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll always get it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And what is the most important rule?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You love me no matter what.” Emori said, tears starting to fall. While it was the most important rule, at this moment, Emori didn’t feel loved at all. In fact, she was starting to hate herself. Hate herself for opening up years ago, letting Clarke tell her that she was loved and valuable. She certainly didn’t believe she was loved and valued at the moment.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori didn’t tell Clarke, but there were times where she still felt worthless, and that she sometimes wished she was still a child, when all she had to worry about was scavenging. Nobody loved her back then, and she didn’t have to worry about someone lying to her face about it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, let’s get started. Would you like to do soap first?” Clarke asked. When Emori nodded, she was about to ask the </span>
  <span>submissive’s</span>
  <span> color, but Emori went right ahead and grabbed the soap, putting it in her mouth herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>It stayed in for thirty seconds and she didn’t even gag once. She wanted to show that she could handle it, and she didn’t want to even cry, because the last thing she wanted was comfort. Emori was furious, and she didn’t want to give anyone the satisfaction of making her need comfort.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After the mouth soaping, Emori immediately got over Clarke’s lap and simply said green, wanting to get it over with. Clarke did a </span>
  <span>twenty swat</span>
  <span> warm up with her hand over her pants, before landing fifteen with the paddle over her panties. Unfortunately, Emori’s plan of not crying failed miserably, her face was practically soaked from her tears, but she didn’t make a single sound throughout the spanking, except for the few intakes of breath or hisses of pain every once in a while. Other than those though, she never whimpered, never cried out, barely reacting to her punishment.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There we go Baby. All done.” Clarke said quietly, putting the paddle down and going to rub Emori’s back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The brunette however, got up quickly, and gingerly pulled her pants up, before grabbing Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> off the bed and leaving the room. She knew aftercare was mandatory, but she’d rather be miserable by herself for a while. She needed time alone.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori went out to the oak tree, in the front yard of the farm house. It was her favorite place on the property, because it had a treehouse and a tire swing. The treehouse was where she felt safe. She settled in the small space and sat still, looking out the little window, contemplating how she ended up here.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>It would have been for the best if I never found John. I never would have been a submissive, I would have died in </span>
  </em>
  <em>
    <span>Praimfaya</span>
  </em>
  <em>
    <span>, I would have never had to deal with love or betrayal. When you have nothing, you’ve got nothing to lose</span>
  </em>
  <span>. She thought, wiping her eyes with Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As she tried to gain her composure better, she looked out the little window to the tree house and felt a little rush of panic when she saw Clarke coming across the yard, making her way over to the tree house.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The blonde quickly made her way up the ladder and opened the door, before popping her head in.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, I have no idea what has gotten into you, but aftercare is mandatory. You do not walk out before I give the all clear. Do you understand?” Clarke asked, growing frustrated when Emori didn’t answer.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I said, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?” Clarke suddenly shouted, grabbing Emori by the ankle and roughly yanking her forward. Emori yelped in shock, and from the pain of having her butt slide across the floor, looking at Clarke, scared of her. Clarke has never yanked her before. She didn’t know how to feel.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m going to go back inside. Either you leave the tree house by yourself and come in to do aftercare, or I’ll rip you out of here myself.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori was so scared by Clarke’s threat that she immediately followed her back into the house, feeling that her threat of physical force would actually be used as promised.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke lied though. The two didn’t do aftercare immediately when she entered the house. Upon walking in, Clarke snatched Tug Tug away and sent Emori to the corner, giving her an additional punishment of a timeout for walking out before doing aftercare.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Twenty minutes passed before Emori was taken out of her corner to do aftercare, and even then, she barely registered it. She let Clarke call all the shots, and barely even felt any of the cuddles or kisses. Hearing Clarke’s gentle voice after being shouted at was also scary for her, because to Emori, it seemed like Clarke could morph so easily and it just made her feel uneasy, and unsafe, in general. She didn’t like it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eventually, Clarke stopped, realizing that Emori wasn’t “taking aftercare seriously” so she stopped and got up, turning to her girl on the couch.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I swear, sometimes you are the biggest brat to ever live. If Baylis would have known that, he would have left you.” She scolded, before muttering, “Maybe he should have,” before leaving and going to find John.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori felt more shame bubble up, because she had never thought of it like that before. How easier everything would have been for everyone if she had died from exposure and starvation, just like her parents had originally intended. The day Baylis found her and took her with him, was the day she had been cursed for the rest of her life.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The brunette shook her head, not wanting to think about it too much. She couldn’t go back in the past and die in the woods sooner, so she had to live with this cursed life while she still had it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori knew that people had different spiritual beliefs, and she didn’t really believe in an invisible person in the sky like some did, but she did believe she was born and kept alive for a reason, and if she was still alive, that reason hasn’t been fulfilled yet. It’s the only thing she could think of that excused her from death so many times in her life. Still, despite knowing that her existence held some sort of importance, it hurt dreadfully to hear her own dominant imply that the person that ended up saving her made a terrible mistake. It made her sick to her stomach.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori felt the need to leave. She didn’t want to be in the house right now, and she wanted to find additional comfort, so she grabbed Tug Tug and left, going to Raven’s shop, to see what her friend was doing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When she entered, she saw Raven working on some sort of project, though she had no idea what it was. The other girl was so busy that it took her a few minutes to notice that Emori was standing there.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey. What’s up?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing much. What are you doing?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fixing the bike.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two stood in silence for a minute until Raven turned to her friend.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Look, Emori, now’s not really a good time. If you’re just going to stand there and watch me, I ask that you go find something else to do. We can hang out later.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, yeah. Sure.” She said, before turning and leaving. While she completely understood Raven’s reasoning for kicking her out, it still stung a little that she wasn’t needed or wanted by her friend.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Deciding to hopefully find Echo next, Emori wandered around, before going into the school. The preschoolers were having evaluations and while the teachers talked over results with the parents, Echo sat in the rocking chair with ten children around her, reading to them. She looked up and smiled when she saw Emori standing in the doorway of the room, and that smile made Emori feel safe. She slowly came over, and sat about three yards away from the reading rug, on the outskirts of the circle. Echo was finishing</span>
  <em>
    <span>Where</span>
  </em>
  
  <em>
    <span>the Wild Things Are</span>
  </em>
  <span> and once that book was done, she grabbed a new one, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Jolly Tall</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Emori’s favorite.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Echo picked the book for Emori specifically, because she knew that something had happened. She could see from her spot that Emori’s face was red and tear stained, puffy around the eyes. When Emori gets upset, she almost always cuddles with Clarke, so Echo knew that something must have happened, to cause Emori to seek her out.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She of course, couldn’t ask her what was wrong in front of a bunch of preschoolers, so she picked the book to hopefully provide comfort to her friend, until the evaluation discussions were over and she could talk to Emori herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Twenty minutes and three books later, Echo was relieved from her post and she took Emori with her when she left. She led her friend to a wide grassy field and sat down, wanting to talk with her in private.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, what’s up?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing.” Emori said, not wanting to tell Echo and get in trouble with Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori……you don’t just walk into the classroom with visible signs that you were crying and then tell me that nothing is wrong. Something had to have happened.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori went on to tell Echo all of it, her side of the story, how John twisted it to benefit him, how Clarke didn’t believe her or give her a chance to explain herself, her punishment, and then the disaster in the tree house and with aftercare.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the time she finished she was crying again, and Echo gently rubbed her back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t trust anyone anymore. Except Tug Tug.” She said finally, and she saw Echo look at her sadly.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Baby, I am sorry that this has happened to you. Would you like me to talk to Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No! She’ll think I lied to you and I’ll get in trouble again!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. I won’t.” Echo said, knowing that Emori was probably right. If Clarke believed Murphy, and she found out Emori was telling people something other than what Murphy said, she might punish her for lying again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you believe me Echo?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, I wasn’t there. I don’t have both sides of the story, plus, I am supposed to remain unbiased towards you two. I’d have to see solid proof Baby.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded, understanding that Echo was supposed to stay neutral, but hating it anyway. She just wanted one person to tell her that they wholeheartedly believed her. Just one person.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m tired. I’m gonna go home.” Emori said after a little bit. She didn’t really want to think about it anymore, especially when the people she’s with aren’t going to either give her the time of day or believe her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok.” Echo said softly, giving Emori one more hug before she left.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Emori got home, she went up to the bedroom and settled into bed, snuggling Tug Tug close.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I bet you’re the only one who really loves me.” She whispered to the towel, before slowly falling asleep.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Later in the day, Emori was woken up to Clarke rubbing her back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hi Baby.” She said gently. “Supper is ready.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori slowly blinked and looked at Clarke. She felt a bit weird, considering that Clarke hadn’t been the nicest the last time they talked. With this conversation now, it was as if nothing had happened.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>C’mere</span>
  <span> Baby.” Clarke said, with the same gentle voice that she used before. The blonde then hooked her hands under Emori’s armpits and scooped her up, carrying the brunette on her hip, and Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> of course.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Dinner was a silent affair. Emori focused on eating and only answered when Clarke asked her questions. She completely ignored John, because he broke her trust, and she was angry. It was almost like years three through five on the ring.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And John was picking up on it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He knew he lied. At first, he had too much of an adrenaline rush to feel his guilt but after he heard Clarke start paddling Emori, he started to feel bad. He was too scared however, to come clean at that time, because he didn’t want to get punished. He was also really scared because he knew that if he came clean now, Clarke would give him an even worse punishment than what he originally would have gotten if he had owned up to what he did at first.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The problem with this is that if he told the truth, Clarke would be disappointed and wouldn’t trust him, but if he kept it to himself, he could potentially ruin his relationship with Emori. It was already painful losing her once on the ring, he didn’t want to go through that again and make it possibly permanent.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori was excused after eating and she went back upstairs to lay in bed, at least until Clarke was ready to help her shower. Since she was gone, John knew what he had to do.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He had to tell the truth. He needed to make this right.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes John?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I have something to tell you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I lied to you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean? When did you lie sweetie?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“About today. I threw the remote at the tv, not Emori.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke just stared at John, dumfounded. He could see that she was going through a lot emotions at the moment, the devastation from being betrayed and lied to, the disappointment, and worse, the concern towards Emori. John could see the exact moment where Clarke knew she fucked up, just by her facial expression.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh my God.” She said quietly, putting her head in her hands. “I paddled Emori for nothing……I yelled at her for nothing. I didn’t let her defend herself or tell me what happened……”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry Miss Clarke. Please, tell me how I can make up for this.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, for starters, you’ll be getting the same punishment I gave Emori, but I’ll be doubling it. So instead of thirty seconds, you’ll get soap for a minute and for spanking you’ll get forty warm up swats over your pants and thirty swats with the paddle over your underwear. Then, for the next two months, you’ll be by my side and within my sight, no matter what. We’ll work out the kinks tomorrow. To start your punishment however, seeing that you’re done eating, we are going to march upstairs to the bedroom and you will apologize to Emori. You will give a whole hearted apology and then after that, whether Emori forgives you or not, you’ll get ready for bed and go to bed early. Am I understood?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. Let’s go.” Clarke said, getting up and leading John up to the bedroom.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori? Can we talk Sweetie?” Clarke asked, coming into the bedroom.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke?” Emori asked, wary and confused. She was hoping she wasn’t going to get in trouble again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It has been brought to my attention that John had lied earlier today about what happened to the tv, and you were unfairly punished for something you didn’t do. I am so sorry for acting so carelessly and rash when it came to this punishment. After I deal with John for tonight, you and I are going to have a very serious talk about this. I am so, </span>
  <span>so</span>
  <span> sorry Baby.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>With that, Clarke turned to John and gave him a little nudge, giving the floor to him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, I’m really sorry. I was being extremely selfish and I know there won’t be a way to take it back, but I do want you to know that I regret what I did. I wish I had told Miss Clarke the truth right away. I am so sorry. I completely understand if you don’t wanna forgive me yet, but please know that I am really sorry.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori was really quiet while she listened to Murphy but when he stopped talking, she looked to Clarke. She wasn’t sure what to do. First off, she wasn’t sure if she was ready to forgive John yet. She also wasn’t sure if Clarke wanted her to automatically forgive him just for convenience sake.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well Emori, what you do you say?” She asked, trying to keep her voice neutral, so Emori hopefully could feel like she could make the decision herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.” Emori said after thinking it through. “You broke my trust. I don’t know when I’ll trust you again but I am not ready to forgive yet.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s ok.” Clarke said quietly, not even surprised. “Whenever you’re ready Baby.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded, happy that Clarke wasn’t forcing her to forgive John when she wasn’t ready.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy, why don’t you take Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> downstairs for a bit? After I put John to bed, we need to talk.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke.” she said quietly, going to do as she’s told.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After Emori left, Clarke helped John get ready for bed and tucked him in for early bedtime, before coming downstairs and finding Emori.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two girls sat and talked for almost three hours, discussing how Clarke’s words and actions had affected Emori, and how she was afraid that she was unloved, especially compared to John. Concerns over things repeating from the Year 3 disaster were also brought up and Clarke reassured her that everything would be ok and be resolved in time. That in the future, conflict would be handled more responsibly, and Clarke would try her hardest to never assume again, and be more thorough when trying to get to the bottom of a disagreement. The most important thing that Clarke wanted to clear up was the love thing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy, while it is true that John and I have known each other longer and we came from the same clan, I will never ever play favorites or love one of you over the other. I love you just the same. We are all family and our love will only grow, never shrink or shift from one to another. I will never love you any less, I promise. Ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded and cuddled in next to Clarke. She had started to feel much better in the three hours that they had been talking. Though it would take some time to trust John after this, she definitely trusted Clarke again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And one more thing Em. It might take a few days, but I have a surprise coming that will make up for this. It’s a little apology gift from John and I, and in the next two or three days, it’ll be ready to give to you, so keep your eyes peeled ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke!” The brunette said excitedly, wondering what the surprise could be.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, Emmy it’s getting close to bedtime, why don’t you go upstairs and get ready for bed, and I’ll tuck you in?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke.” She said, before going upstairs, with Clarke following behind.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The next morning after breakfast, Clarke sent Emori to spend the day with Echo and help out at the school, since she needed the house to be empty, so she could punish John privately. He had a long and emotional day ahead of him, and she really didn’t want to push it with visitors.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright Baby, are you ready?” She asked, sitting on the bed, John sitting beside her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” He said, wanting to get this over with. He’d been dreading it all night.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. </span>
  <span>So,</span>
  <span> I told you last night what your punishment would be, but I want to review and negotiate if we have to ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, John, you’ll have two punishments, a short term and a long-term punishment. For the short </span>
  <span>term, I</span>
  <span> told you that I wanted to do Emori’s punishment, but double. That means that instead of thirty seconds of soap, you’ll get one minute. For spanking, I gave her twenty swats with my hand over her pants, so that means you’ll get forty. Then, I gave her fifteen swats with the paddle over her underwear. That means you’ll get thirty. Do you consent to the short-term part of your punishment?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” He said quietly, not looking forward to his spanking at all.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now John, this is going to be very taxing on you, physically and emotionally. If you take the full punishment, it’ll be seventy swats total. I don’t expect that you’ll take the full punishment, and I want you to use your</span>
  <span>safe words</span>
  <span> when you need them.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t think I’ll need them.” John said, a little bit </span>
  <span>cockier</span>
  <span> than what Clarke was expecting.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah go ahead and keep thinking that.” She muttered, raising an eyebrow at him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, before we start short term, we have to talk about long term. For the next two months, starting today after I spank you, you will be in my sight at all times. Where ever I go, you go. Where ever you go, I go. Exceptions are only when I grant them. Do you have any questions regarding this punishment?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“When you say everywhere, does that mean the bathroom?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. When I have to go to the bathroom, you will sit on the bed and wait for me. Same as when I am showering. I will help you bathe and shower each night and you will dress in front of me and I will also be in there when you go potty.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John’s face heated with a blush, from Clarke’s childish words, and he got uncomfortable. It’s not that he was uncomfortable with modesty or nudity in front of Clarke, the dressing and bathing he could handle. He however, did not want to go to the bathroom in front of her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I want to renegotiate.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. What would you like to change?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Everything stays the same except when I go to the bathroom, I have privacy to do it myself.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke, being extremely flexible with her submissives’ wants and needs, nodded. She didn’t want to make John more uncomfortable than necessary, and she was willing to renegotiate terms to achieve that.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s fine John. If it really makes you uncomfortable and you want to have privacy in the bathroom, that is perfectly fine.” She reassured, rubbing his back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank </span>
  <span>you, Miss Clarke</span>
  <span>.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No problem Baby. Now, do you consent to your </span>
  <span>long-term</span>
  <span> punishment?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. Let’s get started then. Why are you getting punished today?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I broke the television and lied about it, blaming Emori instead and causing her to get punished when she didn’t deserve it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What punishment have we decided on?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>One minute</span>
  <span> mouth soaping, spanking with forty hand swats and thirty paddle swats, plus two months of being in your sight.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Very good John. What are your safe words and what are the rules regarding </span>
  <span>safe words</span>
  <span>?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green for go, yellow for slow down or break, red for stop, do not continue, something is wrong. I can use my safe words whenever I need them, and I do not have to worry about getting in trouble for using them.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good job. What is the rule regarding aftercare?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That no matter if I finish the punishment or have to end early, I’ll always get aftercare.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Very good. What’s the last but most important rule?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll always love me no matter what. This misbehavior won’t change that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s right Baby. Now, what do you want to do first, soap or spanking?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Soap.” He said quickly, not wanting to do soap right after a spanking.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok.” Clarke said, nodding. She knew John was going to say soap first, because if both subs needed soap as a punishment, they always wanted it first. After a few years of being in this dynamic, they both preferred </span>
  <span>soap </span>
  <span>first.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John took the soap well and once his mouth was rinsed out, Clarke settled him over her lap.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok Baby. I’m gonna check in with you every ten ok? Remember your safe words if you need them.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, what color John?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green.” He said after a moment, and Clarke nodded before starting.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the time they were a little over halfway done, Clarke stopped and decided to check in, the fourth set of ten done.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How are you doing Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy didn’t respond. He was too busy crying. Since this was a punishment, Clarke wasn’t being particularly gentle, but she was giving him plenty of breaks and waiting until he was ready to continue with each set of ten. Now though, the hand portion of the spanking was done, and if John was still up for it, it was now time to transition to the paddle.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yellow.” He whimpered after </span>
  <span>a while</span>
  <span>. Clarke wasn’t really that surprised. It’s been about 45 minutes since they even started the spanking, because there were times between sets where John wanted to wait five to ten minutes, especially since he was also going through a lot of mental turmoil. They waited almost fifteen minutes before she ran her fingers through his hair and talked with him again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok Baby. I’m going to move on to the paddle now. What color are you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green.” He sputtered out, still crying really hard.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since he gave his color, Clarke pulled down his pants and picked up the paddle, giving him the fifth set of ten. He gave another green after a </span>
  <span>five minute</span>
  <span> break, though Clarke stopped at the 53rd swat, because his cries sounded so pained. When she called red, he started sobbing so hard that he wasn’t making any sound, and that was when Clarke knew that she made the right choice to call red herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok Baby. It’s ok. We’re all done.” She said gently, rubbing his back and cooing softly, wanting him to focus on calming down.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry Miss Clarke!” He cried out, when he eventually found his words.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Baby. It’s ok. It’s ok.” She soothed, before gently setting him belly down on the bed so she could start aftercare.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>For the rest of the day, Clarke gave John plenty of aftercare and love, before putting him to bed for an early bedtime after supper, since this punishment really wore him out.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few days later, Emori was speaking to John again, and the day after his punishment, he apologized to her again sincerely. As a surprise to make up for what had happened, Clarke presented Emori with a lamb, a little baby sheep all for herself, to love and take care of. The brunette was overjoyed, because she had wanted farm animals ever since they moved into the farm house. Her happiness spread even more when John offered to help her build a small barn for the animal, since Clarke made it clear that no barn animals were allowed in the house.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke of course allowed the barn raising plans because she felt that this activity could help John and Emori bond, and make their relationship stronger than it was.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And who knows, maybe in the future they could add some cows, pigs, and chicken to the mix, growing their family in more ways than one.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. That's Not Right</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After Clarke took down the City of Light, the first night back at Arkadia, Murphy tells her that he was raped by Ontari</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>tw past rape and sexual abuse are mentioned in this chapter. Please proceed with caution.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Later that night, everyone in Polis made it back to Arkadia and it was the first time since before Lexa died that Clarke was able to spend the night with John and Emori. Well, mostly with John. Once they got back, Emori had alerted Clarke that she had a headache, specifically where the chip had been, so the blonde took her girl to the med bay and Abby had her on observation to make sure that she was ok. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After running a few tests, Abby had confirmed that a headache was a normal side effect, added with the stress of traveling. Some others who had the chip had similar side effects so Abby wanted to keep Emori for observation, in case something changed overnight. Since this type of thing was unknown for all of them, with AI, they had no idea if something would happen in the near future. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Abby felt that keeping Emori overnight would be good enough, and if nothing else happened, then she’d be released and Clarke would just have to keep an eye on her and let medical know if something else happened.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since John never took the chip, and his injuries only extended to some cuts and bruises, Clarke patched him up and the two stayed with Emori for the evening, eating dinner as a family and watching out for her. At nine o’ clock, Abby let Clarke help Emori shower and put on pajamas before tucking her in for bed, promising to be by first thing in the morning for breakfast.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After Emori was settled, Clarke and John went to their quarters for the night, and went to bed, getting some rest after the strenuous weeks that they went through.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few hours later, in the middle of the night, Clarke woke up to the sound of whimpering. Remembering that Emori was in medical for the night, she immediately knew that it was John who was in distress.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, wake up Baby. You’re having a nightmare.” Clarke said soothingly, rubbing his back and growing concerned when she saw that his face was wet with tears.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke....” He whimpered, when he finally woke up and locked eyes with her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey Baby. You were having a nightmare. Would you like to tell me what happened?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John gave Clarke a small nod and let out a shaky breath. She sat up helped him sit up next to her and waited patiently for </span>
  <span>whenever</span>
  <span> he was ready.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“In my dream, you never came back.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I never came back to Polis?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah. And then instead of you being my dominant in the dream, </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> was. I didn’t like it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, that doesn’t sound like a good scenario.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it ok to be angry at someone, even if they are dead?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I think it depends on the situation. Why? Who are you angry at?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ontari. She wasn’t the nicest after you were gone.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke paused and looked at John, confused.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean? Titus promised both me and Lexa that she wouldn’t interact with either you or Emori. She wasn’t even supposed to be allowed around you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Titus made me pretend to be a fake flame keeper and he made me take care of her.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That bastard.” Clarke mumbled under her breath, starting to feel a bit of uncertainty as to where this story was going. If Titus completely disregarded her and Lexa’s wishes on Murphy and Emori’s treatment while she took the flame away from Polis, then that meant Ontari could have been horribly cruel to both her loves.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, if you don’t mind me asking, what did </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> do to you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not much. She ordered me around, and threatened me. When we were in her bedroom, she kept me on a chain and a collar, which I didn’t like. It reminded me of when I got hung.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She put you on a leash? John that is not ok.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy was quiet for a moment, before he let out a hitched breath, a sign he was crying again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, Honey, why are you crying? None of what happened to you was your fault.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But I broke a rule while you were gone. I betrayed both you and Emmy.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, what are you talking about?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke.......I had sex with Ontari.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke paused when she heard that, and looked to John.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You had sex with her?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not that I really wanted to do it. It’s just, she pulled on my chain thing and she implied that if we didn’t do it, she’d kill me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, that’s not sex. That’s rape. And sometimes, our bodies do stuff whether we want them to or not. From what it sounds like, you two just had what seems like normal sex, but what makes it rape is that </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> took away your decision to say no by implying that you’d be killed if you did. No matter if the sex is casual or if you were brutalized, it makes it rape if you didn’t have a safe option to say no. </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> didn’t let you feel safe enough to say no, so it wasn’t consensual, no matter how casual it was. Do you understand Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, but it still feels like I betrayed you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I promise Sweetie, that you did no such thing. You going along with something in order to survive is not betrayal. I know you, and I know that if </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> would have given you a choice, without implication of a punishment, you would have said no. You were forced to say yes, and getting raped is not the equivalent of sleeping with someone and cheating. Ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok.” John said reluctantly, still feeling a bit guilty. Clarke knew that this was something they’d have to work through, and with the support of both her and Emori, John would eventually be able to work through it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two sat in silence for a few minutes before Clarke realized something. John had to pump </span>
  <span>Ontari’s</span>
  <span> heart in order to keep her alive when she was in the city of light. He had to pump his rapist’s heart in order to save her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John. I wanted to thank you for what you did in Polis. You pumped that bitch’s heart in order to keep me alive. That was a very brave thing for you to do Sweetie, and I am so grateful that I have such a brave, thoughtful boy like you in my life.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That was easy Miss Clarke. She was dead and didn’t matter anymore. You’re you. I couldn’t lose you. I know that Emmy couldn’t lose you. I’d do anything for you two.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And that’s what makes you the best boyfriend ever. Your big heart.” Clarke said quietly, pulling Murphy into a close hug.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?” John asked, after a few </span>
  <span>minutes</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can we maybe not tell Emori right away? I want to tell her on my own terms, but I need to figure out how to do it in a gentle way so I don’t trigger her.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think that’s a great idea John.” Clarke said quietly, agreeing wholeheartedly. Emori, before running away from the people that found her when she was a baby and finding John, had lived with a group of nomadic scavengers. She had no family to call her own and the head scavenger, a man named Baylis, had mistreated her many times while she was in his care. From her memories, abuse started really young, because some of it clouded even her earliest memories, and Emori had told Clarke that she could remember Baylis touching her in places that nobody should touch a child, like her chest and genitals.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Though it was too painful for Emori to talk about, she had told Clarke and John that she wasn’t quite ready for sex yet, because Baylis had raped her countless times, only stopping when she became a teenager and got her period, to avoid getting her pregnant. If she was “normal” as he would say, the sexual abuse would have lasted, but Baylis was verbally and emotionally abusive as well, and because of Emori’s hand, he did not want to risk any of his offspring having any defects. So as soon as Emori began to menstruate, the abuse stopped, and she kept her head down for a few years to not provoke him, and then a few months prior to the city of light and ALIE, she escaped and found John. So yes, keeping the truth about </span>
  <span>Ontari</span>
  <span> away from Emori was a good idea for now, especially since mentions of rape or sexual abuse of any kind triggered her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can talk to Emori about it whenever you think you both are ready.” Clarke said reassuringly. She was ready to be supportive over any topic for both of her </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span>, and she wanted them to make the best decisions for themselves in their lives.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John nodded and snuggled close to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you, Miss Clarke. For listening and always being there for us.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s why we do this John, so that I can help you and Emori get passed stuff and we can all grow together and take care of each other. I’m really sorry that this happened to you, and we can talk more about it in the future, but if you would like to do therapy or something like that, I’d be extremely supportive of whatever choices you wanted to make.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy nodded and smiled. “I’ll think about it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded and pressed a kiss to his hair. “That’s good enough for me. How about we go back to sleep, and we can talk more about this in the morning, ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sounds good.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. I love you John.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you too Miss Clarke.” Murphy replied, as the two snuggled down, and fell back to sleep with the constant hum of the Ark there to help them drift off.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Sickfic Chapter</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Murphy and Emori gets sick. Clarke takes care of them.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Clarke was standing at the stove one morning, making breakfast. It was a nice day on Sanctum and she couldn’t wait until Murphy and Emori woke up so they could all enjoy it together.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As she worked to make scrambled eggs, she hummed to herself and swayed side to side before a small voice startled her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes John?” She asked, not turning around yet. Because both Emori and John, but especially the latter had some anxiety over conversation, Clarke did not demand or require eye contact. When Raven and Echo brought up concerns over it not allowing respect, Clarke had politely argued that listening is done with the ears, and not the eyes. If John or Emori needed Clarke to acknowledge them by looking, she would do it, but for most things, all she needed was her ears focused.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke, Emori’s red.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?” Clarke asked, before turning and looking at John. Her eyes bugged out in shock when she saw her submissive standing there, covered head to toe in spots. He also looked a bit sweaty and tired, and Clarke quickly took the frying pan off the stove and turned the appliance off, so she could focus on her boy, who was clearly sick.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John what in the world?” She asked, coming closer and feeling his forehead. He was burning with a fever and she could tell that he was uncomfortable.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori looks worse than me.” He said simply, and Clarke nodded in understanding.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, let’s get you back into bed. We’ll figure it out.” She said softly, trying to hide her nerves. She already knew what was wrong, based on previous events. John and Emori both had chicken pox. They had helped out at the preschool about two and a half weeks before, and then a few days later the entire school closed due to an outbreak. Since it took about two weeks for the disease to make an appearance after first contracting it, Clarke had been waiting.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She had no idea if John had chicken pox on the Ark prior to the 100 coming down, because he had no recollection of it and she and Raven couldn’t find any medical records of it, though there was incomplete data for all the Ark born survivors on the Ring. Plus, while some vaccinations like Polio were required by law, others like the flu shot and chicken pox shot were completely optional. Clarke already knew that John didn’t have the optional vaccines, because his mother refused to take him to get his flu shot. She was not surprised at all that he was sick.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori being sick wasn't a surprise either. There were no vaccinations on Earth, so all sorts of childhood diseases were apart of normal life, but considering that Emori hadn’t lived in a normal village with other children, and she had to scavenge for adults that were already immune, it wasn’t that surprising that she was sick, and it also wasn’t surprising that she was worse off than John, simply because her immune system wasn’t as strong as his.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When she arrived at the bedroom with John, she saw Emori sitting up in bed, looking quite miserable. John was right, her rash was heavier and seemed more prominent than his, and Clarke could tell her spots were already irritating her. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And if Emori’s spots were already itching, then that means John’s spots would be bothering him soon enough as well. After she tucked him into bed, she stood at the foot of the bed and looked at her loves with pity.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, so you both have chicken pox. It looks like Emori is already feeling some irritation so John, make sure you let me know when you do too. Also, let me know if something just doesn’t feel right, because chicken pox is worse in adults than children, so if there are complications, I need to know. One at a time, I need you to tell me how you’re feeling.” She said, looking to John first.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tired, hot, </span>
  <span>uncomfy</span>
  <span>.” Was all he said, and Clarke nodded in understanding. She could imagine he felt a lot of feelings right now, but uncomfortable could probably sum it up well.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How about you Em?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Ucky</span>
  <span>. Itchy.” She said, looking at Clarke miserably.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I bet so Honey.” She cooed, knowing just by how angry her spots looked, Emori was probably going through hell.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I want you two to rest. I’ll get you both some fever medication and Emori I’ll get you some anti-itch medicine as well. I’ll be right back.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After getting her loves some water and medicine, Clarke went to work with undressing Emori and rubbing some lotion on her. After her front was coated, </span>
  <span>Clarke</span>
  <span> waited a few minutes for her to dry before rolling her and getting her back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There. I bet that feels a bit better, doesn’t it?” She asked, kissing her girl’s hair.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded slowly. Clarke was right, her itching was almost all gone, but she was still uncomfortable.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright Baby. What jammies do you want to wear?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nakey.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You </span>
  <span>wanna</span>
  <span> be nakey?” Clarke asked, not having a problem with the request. All three in the room had seen each other naked plenty of times before, and if this was the most comfortable for Emori, she’d let her wear as minimal amount of clothes that she wanted.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just undies.” Emori clarified, and Clarke nodded, sliding a pair of panties up her girlfriend’s legs.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What about you John?” She asked, knowing for comfort’s sake, he’d probably feel better if he wasn’t wearing heavy layers with a fever. She did ask however, because she knew that besides spots, he also had scars from years of abuse littering his torso. Even if he was uncomfortable, especially when he started itching, there was a chance he’d stay in layers due to feeling </span>
  <span>self-conscious</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke and Emori both worked their hardest to try and make their home a safe environment, so John knew that he wouldn’t have to be ashamed of his scars, but ultimately, whether he showed them or not was up to him, and no matter what he decided, the two women would support him all the way.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. I’m fine thank you.” He said, signaling that he wanted to stay in the pajamas he was wearing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s ok. Let me know if you change your mind.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He nodded and Clarke looked at the two, seeing that they looked exhausted. The best thing for them now was a nap.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. I want you to sleep now. I’ll bring some work up here so I can be here if you need anything. Just rest and Emori</span>
  <span>......</span>
  <span>no scratching.” She said, giving the girl a pointed look. “I mean it Emori.” She added, seeing her girlfriend scratching at a spot on her cheek.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why?” The brunette asked, genuinely wanting to know.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Because if we scratch at our spots too hard, they will break open and bleed, and that can bring a risk of infection. We don’t want that, do we?” She asked, smiling and nodding when Emori shook her head.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s right Baby Girl. We don’t want that. So that’s why we don’t scratch </span>
  <span>Puddin</span>
  <span>’.” She said, leaving scarring out of it. Clarke knew that people who cared more about cosmetics discouraged scratching because broken spots could lead to scars later on. In their house however, Clarke didn’t want to make a big deal about scars of any kind, or make them seem negative, especially around Murphy. She honestly didn’t care if either of them had a few chicken </span>
  <span>pox</span>
  <span> scars after they got better, they were beautiful and handsome no matter what. The biggest thing though, was Clarke did not want to worry about infection when it was already a higher risk sickness because the two were adults.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why don’t you just hold Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> for a bit and rest, and in a little bit, I can let you two take a bath. How does that sound?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori only nodded before settling down with her towel, and trying her hardest to rest for Clarke and not focus on how uncomfortable she was.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>While the two rested, Clarke went and brought some work up to the bedroom, sitting at the desk to get it done. This way she could still be productive and also be there for her </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span> if they needed her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Throughout the day, Clarke brought them things and took care of them, making sure to reapply lotion and administer medicine as needed. By the afternoon, John’s spots were starting to make him uncomfortable and the easy parts were over. Now Clarke had two extremely miserable and uncomfortable loves and she felt so bad for them. John was worse off than Emori at this point and Clarke knew that his many layers were making his fever more uncomfortable but his </span>
  <span>self-consciousness</span>
  <span> over his scars was winning over at this time.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The blonde was trying her best to make them comfortable but it wasn’t really working the best. For Emori, it wasn’t so bad because she was being more cooperative, but for John, he was refusing to do certain things and that was leading him to feeling more miserable.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Later </span>
  <span>on,</span>
  <span> in the day, after giving Emori a bath and some food to eat, Clarke reapplied lotion and gave her girl some medicine that would make her sleepy, so she could get some </span>
  <span>much needed</span>
  <span> rest. As soon as Emori was out cold, Clarke turned all of her focus on John, to finally help him feel more comfortable.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright Honey, I’m going to help you get comfortable. I think we need to give you a bath.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No...” John said quietly, not moving.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Baby, I have some special bath soap that can help with itching. You’ve barely let me put lotion on you and I know you’re uncomfortable.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m fine.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, as your dominant, I know what is best for you, and if I say you need a bath, then you’re going to take a bath.” She said firmly, helping him out of bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Clarke got his bath ready and helped him get undressed, she could tell that along with lack of lotion, the fabric of his pajamas had irritated his rash further, causing his spots on his back and belly to look angry, </span>
  <span>inflamed</span>
  <span>, and red. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was frowning the entire time and Clarke knew he was unhappy with her, but in the moment, she didn’t care. He was not going to torture himself just because he didn’t like his scars. Bath time, no matter the circumstance or situation was non-negotiable. John and Emori were required to shower at least once daily, because proper hygiene </span>
  <span>was</span>
  <span> a must in their home.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She did know however, that he was upset over something else. No matter if he was sick or not, John never gave her trouble at bath time, unless his scars were bothering him. Clarke knew that was probably why he was upset, and these new little irritating blemishes covering his skin was probably making it worse.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m so ugly.” Murphy whispered, pulling his knees up next to his chest. “I feel like a weird creature.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, you are the handsomest man I’ve ever laid eyes on.” Clarke said, reassuringly. She knew that he had body images issues because of his scars, and she has told him he is handsome and beautiful probably a million times by now, but she’ll always mean it, and say it again, just so he knows.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Puddin’?</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How long until my spots stop itching? I don’t care if they are really visible or not, they just itch too much.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, you and Emori both started to itch at different points today, but it was still within the parameters of today. Your spots could last anywhere from a week to almost three weeks, but your itching should last at most a week to a week and a half.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not fair!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know Baby. I’m sorry. All we can do is keep doing these baths and using the lotion and just keeping you comfy.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I know.” John said, hating it, but knowing that Clarke was doing the best she truly could.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, look at me, right now Baby.” She said sternly, sitting on the edge of the tub.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you are more </span>
  <span>self-conscious</span>
  <span> about your scars, but after your bath, you will be wearing minimum amounts of clothes. I want to be able to easily put lotion on you and it will be easier for your fever too.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>But</span>
  <span> I don’t want Emori to see....”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke paused at that. She never thought of Murphy’s </span>
  <span>self-consciousness</span>
  <span> taking different forms with different people. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But, Baby, she’s seen your body before, just like I have.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But Emori’s </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> think it’s all ugly.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, Emori would never think your scars are ugly. She never has and she never will, I can </span>
  <span>guarantee</span>
  <span> that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But my spots make it extra ugly.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, Emori has spots too. She looks exactly the same right now when it comes to spots. She can’t judge you for something she has too.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess you’re right Miss Clarke.” John said after a moment, taking Clarke’s point into consideration.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And if it still really bothers you, you can always move into one of the guest bedrooms. I just want you two to be comfortable.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, I </span>
  <span>wanna</span>
  <span> stay with Em.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. That’s fine.” Clarke said, happy that John wasn’t being stubborn anymore.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After his bath, Clarke carefully dried him off and coated him with lotion, to help make up for lost time before, before putting him in some underwear and helping him into bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As the two laid there, she sat at her desk and continued to work, bringing them things and taking care of them as evening turned to night.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Throughout the next week and a half, Clarke took care of the two and as the days went on, both John and Emori were getting better and better. Almost two weeks after being diagnosed, they were the picture of perfect health. Clarke was proud of her loves for taking it so well and was happy when the sickness finally cleared their home.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>At least that’s what she thought.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few days after Emori and John were perfectly healthy again, they had to step up in a big way, surprised to wake up one morning to see Clarke lying in bed, sweaty with a fever, covered in a splotchy rash. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since Clarke is their dominant, they obviously were going to take care of her, especially since she always took care of them, and they did just that, providing love and care for Clarke like she did for them, just as a real family should.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Bedtime Rules</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A tantrum at bedtime leads to Raven having to handle it.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It had just passed the middle of the second year on the Ring and everyone was in the common area playing games. They all had been playing for hours and it was getting close to one in the morning, way past the bedtime that Clarke had set for Murphy and Emori.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once the game that they had been playing finished up, Clarke decided that it was time to get her </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span> off to bed, because she did not want to deal with crabby, sleep deprived loves in the morning.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. </span>
  <span>Em</span>
  <span>, John, it’s time to go to bed.” Clarke said gently, smiling when Emori put her hands up. She yawned and rubbed her eyes as Clarke picked her up, clearly ready to go to bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you sleepy, Hug Bug?” She asked the brunette, and smiled when Emori nodded and yawned again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. Let’s go to bed then. Come on John, you too.” She said gently, shifting her weight to support Emori.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.” John said simply, and Clarke raised her eyebrows.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, it is way past the bedtime I have set for you and Emmy. You getting to stay up this late is a treat.” She said in a firm tone, as if she was warning him that he was pushing it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’re grown-ups. Not babies.” John said, and Clarke shook her head.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I never said you two were babies. Bedtime is something that everyone benefits from. Plus, look how sleepy Emori is. I know you probably feel the same.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t feel the same. If Emori wants to be a stupid baby then let her, but I’m not ready to go to bed yet.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, I do not like your tone, or your words. I want you to apologize to Emori for saying that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ugh, she’ll be fine. I don’t want to go to bed yet.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That is enough John, get up and get moving now.” Clarke said, her tone shifting and becoming harder, as if she was telling Murphy that he was crossing the line.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“JUST FUCK OFF, WOULD YA?” He shouted, waving his hands in exasperation. Unfortunately, one of his hands was curled into a fist and his animated arm swings caused him to punch Emori in the shin. The brunette cried out in pain and Clarke knew her poor girl would probably have a bruise there in the morning.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As soon as Emori started crying, John knew he fucked up. First, he disobeyed Clarke’s orders, then he insulted Emori, shouted and swore at Clarke, and finished off with accidentally punching Emori in the shin.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, you’ve done it now.” Clarke said sternly, not wanting to deal with this. It was late and she was tired too. The last thing she wanted to do at one in the morning was deal with a crying submissive and then having to punish the other one.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She kissed Emori’s hair and tried to calm her, but she knew that Emori probably wouldn’t stop crying for a bit. First, even though it was an accident, John still punched her really hard, and second, she was tired and overwhelmed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Baby, I know.” Clarke cooed, giving her girlfriend a big hug, before turning to Murphy.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You keep your butt right on that seat until you’re told otherwise. I’m going to make sure Emmy is ok and I’m going to put her to bed. You’ll be dealt with later.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” John said quietly, knowing that nothing will stop his punishment so he might as well try and be as respectful as he can be.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke walked out of the main area and took Emori to the quarters that the three shared. She settled her on her bunk and rolled up her pantleg, to see where John had hit her. There wasn’t a bruise but a distinct red mark was on her shin.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Baby, does it hurt? Or are you upset because a lot happened in a short amount of time?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori shook her head and rolled onto her side, grabbing Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> and holding on to the towel, letting the comfort object calm her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you just want to go to bed?” She asked, smiling when Emori nodded.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. You just hug Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, and I’ll get some jammies for you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>While Clarke was tucking Emori into bed, Raven stood in the doorway and knocked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Raven?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How’s she doing?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think she’ll be ok. She’s just really tired and as far as I can tell there is no injury to her leg. We’ll see how it is tomorrow but I think right now she just needs to sleep.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What were you going to do about Murphy?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not sure. It’s too late and all I want to do is be here for Emori. I’m also </span>
  <span>kinda</span>
  <span> upset at Murphy right now. He did not have to act like he did.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I completely get it. Would you like me to take care of him tonight so you can stay with Emmy?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you ok with that?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Of course,</span>
  <span> I am. I know his limits and I can take care of him if you’re ok with it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Go ahead. After you finish aftercare bring him back here.” Clarke said gently, before turning her attention back to Emori.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Raven nodded and left the room, making her way back to the area where they had their game night. Murphy was sitting on the seat like Clarke had told him, and he looked apprehensive.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, Clarke is busy with Emori right now, so I’ll be the one punishing you tonight. Is that ok with you?” She asked, knowing that Murphy needed to consent to his punishment.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She saw his eyes go wide when she said it because it was common knowledge that while Clarke’s punishments, specifically her spankings, hurt really bad, Raven’s hurt even worse.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What would my punishment be?” He asked, not wanting to consent until he knew exactly what Raven was going to do.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“While you deserve to have your mouth scrubbed for swearing at Clarke and insulting Emori, I’m only planning on spanking you. Ten swats over your pants, since I tend to spank hard. Spanking and you need to sincerely apologize to Clarke and Emori for your behavior. That’s your punishment. Do you consent?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” John said after a moment, knowing that he screwed up, and needed to face consequences for what he had done.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. Let’s go to my room.” Raven said, happy that Murphy was willing to comply.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When they got to Raven’s room for privacy, she got down to work, knowing that it was getting closer to two in the morning and she had to do this fast.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright, why am I punishing you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was disrespectful to Miss Clarke and I hurt Emori.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What punishment have we chosen?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A spanking.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are your safe words?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Red for stop, yellow for break and green for go.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good job John. What’s the rule on aftercare?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I always get it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s right. And what’s the most important rule?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m always loved. You and Miss Clarke would never hate me when I’m naughty.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s right John. What’s your color?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Green.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright. Let’s do this. Come here Baby.” </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Once John was in position, Raven started spanking. Since it was only ten swats, it didn’t take that long, but Murphy was crying anyway. Raven’s spankings hurt, and he was also tired.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good job John. You took this so well. I’m proud of you.” Raven said, rubbing John’s back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two then went into aftercare and they cuddled for about twenty minutes, before Raven brought him to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to act like that.” He whispered, running in and giving Clarke a hug. Emori was already asleep so he tried to keep it down, and Clarke gave him a big hug and kiss.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s ok Baby. It’s ok.” Clarke said quietly, hugging him and rocking back and forth. See looked up and mouthed ‘thank you’ to Raven before the brunette left to go to bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a few cuddles, Clarke helped Murphy get ready for bed and tucked him in, before going to bed herself, happy that this little hiccup was behind them.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Let's Fix This</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After some bad decisions, Clarke decides to finally do something about Emori's stress responses</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Emori woke up upset. It was almost six in the morning and she had a stress response.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>This obviously wasn’t the first time she had an accident in the bed, but it was the first time that it had happened without Clarke there. Almost a year after settling into a life on Sanctum, some of a research team that Gabriel put together used the anomaly stone and found out that Earth was reachable, and survivable. After about two months of planning, Clarke went with a team for two weeks to Earth, to scout and see if moving everyone on Sanctum to Earth would be the best move for everyone on the planet. Clarke had left four days ago, so Emori and John had a week and a half yet until she was due to come home.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>They weren’t all alone though. Raven and Echo would come check on them throughout the day and spend time with them, or give them tasks to keep them busy and not missing Clarke as bad. It was going ok, but now with this stress response, Emori wanted Clarke for comfort.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even though it was early, almost two hours before they were supposed to wake up, she knew she had to wake John so they could change the bedding. Luckily, her accident wasn’t massive, and John didn’t get anything on him this time, but the sheets still needed to be changed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John. John.” She whispered, gently shaking him to wake him up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Huh...</span>
  <span>wha</span>
  <span>?” He asked, groggy and still half asleep.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, I had an accident. We have to change the sheets.” Emori said quietly, embarrassed that this kind of stuff even happened to her. She knew John and Clarke would never be angry at her or be mean about it, but it still embarrassed her that she was almost 25 and couldn’t keep her pants dry at night.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck ‘Mori. Why can’t you just use the toilet like a fucking adult?” Murphy mumbled, getting out of bed and going over to the closet to get one of the spare sets of bedding out.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori didn’t say anything in response, mostly because she had no idea what to say. This was the first time John was ever negative about her accidents, and his question made her feel ashamed beyond belief.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since he didn’t press the question, she helped him quickly change the bed and then once everything was put back in order, she went to go take a shower. As she cleaned up, she felt horrible about herself, and thinking about what John said. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Maybe that’s all John and Miss Clarke see when they look at me. A stupid baby</span>
  </em>
  <span>. She thought, hating herself even more. Emori often had problems with body image and self-esteem when these accidents happened. She knew that Clarke had told her that every person’s body worked in its own way, and there’s nothing wrong with her accidents, but on the other hand, Emori also knew that it wasn’t the adult thing to do, consistently wetting the bed. It was also highly stigmatized and rarely ever talked about in a positive light so even if Clarke said bladder issues were more common than people thought, she felt alone, and an outlier to what’s left of the human race.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She felt even worse than normal this time though, because of the fact that Clarke was gone and also, John’s negative reaction didn’t help make things better either. She felt bad that she made John angry, and it was her fault that she disturbed his sleep.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She felt like a horrible girlfriend.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After showering, she went back to the bedroom to grab Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> and wasn’t surprised at all when she saw that John had fallen back asleep already. After grabbing her comfort object, she left the room, not wanting to join John in bed again despite being really tired. The last thing she wanted to do was sleep for a few more hours and wet the new sheets too.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since there wasn’t really anything for her to do, she went down to the kitchen and made herself some breakfast, eating by herself in the quiet, lonely kitchen.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She didn’t really know what to do for the time being, because Echo and Raven wouldn’t be by to check up on the two for almost two hours yet, so she went outside to the treehouse, and sat with Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, to think.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>I shouldn’t be doing this anymore. Maybe I need a punishment in order to stop. Maybe that’s what Miss Clarke is doing wrong. I wonder if she punished me, things would be different. Maybe Raven or Echo could punish me</span>
  </em>
  <span>. She thought to herself, trying to come up with ways to stop her accidents once and for all.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few hours later, John had woken up and ate breakfast, and Raven had come by with Echo to check up on them. Emori had left the treehouse at that point and her demeanor told both ladies that something was up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright, Murphy, you’re with me in the workshop today. I have some things I need you to help me sort through.” Raven said, leading him out of the house. When it was just Echo and Emori, the taller one turned to the shorter.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Before we do our things, we need to talk.” Echo said quietly, leading Emori over to the couch. She knew something was wrong and she wanted to find out what it was.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Em</span>
  <span>, did something happen that Raven and I need to know about?” She asked, noticing that Emori was extremely quiet, and wasn’t really interacting with anyone, but especially not with Murphy. It seemed as if she was trying to avoid him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. I’m ok.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy, you know that Clarke, Raven, and I can tell when you’re not being truthful. Please tell me what happened.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I want Miss Clarke to come home.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Honey, I know you miss her, but she’s doing some really important work for all of us. She’ll be home before you know it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Echo?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Sweetie?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I wet the bed this morning.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, did you clean it up and take care of it?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, your accidents are nothing to be ashamed about. Plus, you miss Clarke, and I think her absence might have been the trigger for this accident. Is that why you’re feeling a bit off today? Are these two things upsetting you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Em</span>
  <span>, would you feel better if Raven or I spent the nights with you two?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. That’s not what I need.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, so what do you need? What can I do that will make you feel better until Clarke comes home?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Echo, can I have a punishment?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A punishment? Emori you haven’t done anything that </span>
  <span>warrants</span>
  <span> a punishment. You’ve been an absolute angel since Clarke left.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I need a punishment so I stop wetting the bed.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. Absolutely not. You will never get punished for your accidents. And don’t even think about asking Raven. She won’t go along with it either.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori did not like hearing this, and as a response, she stomped her feet against the floor and was getting ready to throw a “tantrum fit for a toddler” as Clarke called them. If Echo and Raven weren’t going to punish her for her accidents, they can punish her for other misbehaviors.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s enough.” Echo said sternly, not liking this turn in behavior from her friend. “If you’re going to throw a fit like a baby, I’ll put you down for a nap like you’re one.” She warned, before a look of consideration flashed over her features.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Though, you’re pretty overtired and cranky. A nap might do you some good.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No! No nap!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And why not?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t </span>
  <span>wanna</span>
  <span> wet the bed again!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, if you have another accident, we’ll just clean it up, no problem.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Hmmph</span>
  <span>.” Was all she responded with, and she dropped it, not wanting to deal with it anymore.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Echo could pick up on it as well so she also dropped it, and the two went out to the gardens to work for a bit, with Echo knowing that Emori liked working outside.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The rest of the day went ok for the most part. Emori didn’t verbalize much but after Echo talked to Raven and explained what was going on and the two decided to not push it. Emori also wasn’t talking to John unless she absolutely had to and if she did have to it was only </span>
  <span>one or two word</span>
  <span> answers.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>That night, after being tucked into bed, Emori waited until John fell asleep and snuck out of bed, going to sleep in one of the guest rooms for the night. She didn’t want to wake John up if she had any more accidents, and this way she could hide it better from everyone else.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>This ended up being a disaster.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Every night, for the next week and a half until Clarke came back, Emori slept in the guest bedroom by herself. Her anxiety over missing Clarke amplified over that time and her accidents became extremely consistent, happening every night. Since she believed she deserved a punishment for her accidents, she decided to not change the sheets each morning and then went on to sleep on the same ones each night as a punishment, since it was uncomfortable to sleep on wet sheets.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Because of her constant accidents and her not properly cleaning up afterward, Emori noticed that her skin started to become irritated, particularly in her underwear area. She had patchy rashes, red and itchy, painful to touch. The chafing had gotten so bad that Emori was practically in tears as she waited for Clarke to come home.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Luckily, the blonde came home a few hours after lunch and Emori had made sure all the sheets in the guest bedroom had been washed, and she was sitting patiently and still in the living room when she came into the house.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke!” John cheered, running to give her a hug.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hi Baby. I missed you!” She smiled, giving him a kiss. She glanced up at Emori and noticed the </span>
  <span>faraway</span>
  <span> look in her girlfriend’s eyes. Raven and Echo had already told her that something was wrong and she could tell that they were right.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Baby Girl.” She said, going over to the couch and kissing Emori’s forehead.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke. I missed you.” Emori said quietly, tears welling up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Oh,</span>
  <span> Baby Girl. I know Sweetie. I know.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The three cuddled on the couch for a few hours and caught up, before Clarke and John went to make dinner. Emori tried to help them the best that she could but she was too uncomfortable to really do anything.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even Clarke picked up on her squirming, when Emori was sitting at the table and decided to say something when she saw Emori breaking one of their rules.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, we don’t touch our potty parts at the table. Go wash your hands please.” She said, as she watched the brunette rub her hand against her crotch.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke didn’t care if John or Emori needed to masturbate at any time, she knew they had times where they might need to and if they ever needed to do anything to take care of themselves, they were allowed to excuse themselves and take care of business. Clarke however, did have one rule. No doing anything sexual at the dinner table, especially since it wasn’t the most sanitary, or in a public room in the house when there was an array of bedrooms all over.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” Emori said quietly, going to do as asked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Throughout dinner, Emori didn’t touch anything she shouldn’t have been, but she couldn’t contain her squirming and Clarke had to finally ask her what was wrong, because it was becoming clear that Emori might be in pain, and not horny like Clarke thought.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, is something wrong?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke, I hurt.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You hurt? Where do you hurt Baby?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“In my pants. My skin.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. I’ll take a look at it when we finish dinner. We’ll take care of it at bath time.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After they finished eating, Murphy washed the dishes while Clarke took Emori up to the bathroom and got her bath ready. Emori was nervous because she knew why she felt bad but she was afraid of Clarke’s reaction when she found out that these rashes were her fault.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh. My. Word.” Clarke said, her tone shocked as she pulled Emori’s pants and underwear down. She was not prepared to see a massive rash all over her girlfriend's private parts and bottom. “Emori what happened?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke, I had a lot of accidents at night. Almost every night.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, did you clean up and take care of the bedding properly each time?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At first........”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At first? What do you mean at first?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The first time it happened, I showered and we took care of the bedding. I wanted Raven and Echo to punish me to get me to stop having accidents but they wouldn’t so I punished myself. I didn’t change the bedding in the guest bedroom until this morning.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, are you telling me you slept on wet sheets for nights on end?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, Baby Girl, that’s self-harm. I never want you to ever do that ever again. Do you understand me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am. Am I </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> be in trouble?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. I am not punishing you for this. That is the last thing you need. We’ll talk more about it tomorrow, but we need to bathe you and put some rash cream on you. We’ll also have to go to Jackson tomorrow to make sure you’re not at risk for any infections.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am. Miss Clarke? I’m sorry.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Shhh</span>
  <span>. It’s ok Baby. I know.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke can you make it stop hurting?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll try my best Baby. I can promise you that. It might take some time, but I’ll do what I can to help you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori was so thankful that Clarke was helping her with her bath that night because the blonde was being extremely gentle and since Emori was in pain, gentleness was what she needed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After her bath, Clarke put an extremely liberal amount of rash cream on Emori’s lower half and helped her into her pajamas, before tucking her into bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just rest, we’ll work this out tomorrow, ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good. I love you Emori. Good night.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good night Miss Clarke, I love you too.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke gave Emori a big kiss before leaving the room and going to find Murphy to spend some time with him until it was time to go to bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The next morning, Emori wasn’t feeling much better. Luckily, she didn’t have a stress response so her rashes had a chance to start healing without further irritation but they were still itchy and sore. She was miserable and tired, especially since her rashes prevented her from finding a comfortable position to lay in so she had trouble sleeping.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After breakfast, Clarke took Emori to the clinic for an appointment with Jackson and ten minutes after checking in, they were led back to an exam room and he joined them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, what seems to be the issue?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori has sore and itchy rashes on her underwear area because she was not cleaning up properly or changing wet sheets for over a week after wetting the bed. I have no idea what to do.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jackson raised his eyebrows at this, not at all expecting it, but nodded in understanding.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, let me take a look, and we’ll go from there.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori’s face went red when Clarke gently pulled her pants down and refused to look at Jackson.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She was embarrassed. Not over the fact that she was naked, since she didn’t care the most about modesty to begin with. Plus, Jackson is a doctor and he’s seen worse in his years of practicing. She was embarrassed though because these rashes were her fault. If she had cleaned up properly and changed the sheets after each accident like they always have, this wouldn’t have happened.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The good news is that this looks worse than it is.” Jackson said after he finished up his examination. “There are no signs of infection and with gentle, regular cleaning and some medication, these rashes will clear up pretty quickly.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What kind of medication?” Clarke asked.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, along with the rash cream that you are using, I will be prescribing Emori with an ointment too. The rash cream helps stop irritation and it does provide a protective barrier, in case Emori would have had an accident last night, the cream would have prevented further irritation of the rashes from her urine. The ointment will help with healing the rashes and keeping them from being sore and itchy. The ointment will also protect from any infections too.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Anything else?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes. Make sure her underwear area is kept dry and away from irritating fabrics. Dress her in loose, lightweight, cotton underwear and make sure she changes and cleans up right away if any other accidents happen.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Will do.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now Emori, can you explain to me why you felt the need to self-harm? Because this kind of behavior concerns me.” Jackson said, turning to the brunette. “It’s not just a physical bodily issue anymore, it is now turning into a mental health </span>
  <span>issue</span>
  <span> as well.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I had to punish myself.” Was all Emori said, looking down.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why do you feel the need to punish yourself?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Because only babies wet the bed.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori where is this coming from?” Clarke asked, because she had told her girlfriend multiple times that babies weren’t the only ones that had accidents.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The first accident that happened after you </span>
  <span>left;</span>
  <span> John got mad at me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John got mad at you? How did he get mad at you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I woke him up a few hours before we usually got up to tell him that we needed to change the sheets and he said ‘Why can’t you use the toilet like an adult.’ Or something like that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> have to talk to him.” Clarke muttered, before turning her attention back to Emori. “Baby, he had no right to say that to you. You are an adult, whether you wet the bed or not.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I just don’t </span>
  <span>wanna</span>
  <span> have accidents anymore. I want it to stop!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you do Sweetie.” Clarke said softly, kissing Emori’s temple before turning to Jackson.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jackson, is there anything that we can do to help her? Isn’t there medicine people take to help with like overactive bladders or something like that?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There is medicine but that would not work on Emori. Her bedwetting doesn’t have anything to do with an overactive bladder.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>So,</span>
  <span> what is her bedwetting linked to?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Honestly? Trauma.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Clarke gave him a look, he smiled and continued.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“In her medical records that we have here, it is said that Emori is a survivor or sexual abuse and rape from her childhood. Now, it is possible for children who are sexually abused to take on regressive traits like bedwetting or thumb sucking for example, while dealing with that trauma.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But I never had accidents as a child. Never during the day or at night.” Emori said, confused.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s because I feel that the regressive trait you took on during that time in your life was latching on to Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> and becoming more dependent on them to function. Usually with children and comfort objects, by the time they are five or six, the child often is ok to leave the comfort object during most of the day, and be separated from it for a certain amount of time. At a time when you should have been weaning yourself away from Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, this abuse was happening and causing you to hold tight, and making your attachment stronger. As your life went on, your trauma started to build and build and I feel that what you guys call “The Year Three Disaster” on the ring is what caused all of your trauma to reach a melting point, and since that event involved you thinking Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> was gone and then having nightmares about it, your body </span>
  <span>subconsciously</span>
  <span> acted as if Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> was no longer there anymore, so your body started reacting in more physical ways.” Jackson explained, seeing both girls nod.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, whenever something that might cause trauma happens, your body physically will react with the bedwetting. </span>
  <span>So,</span>
  <span> it is not an overactive bladder that is causing the accidents, it’s Emori’s past traumas mixing with new conflicts that is causing this to happen to her now.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So how would we fix it?” Clarke asked, wanting to help her girl the best she could.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, there are two things that we can do to help with her recovery. They will have to be done by choice though, so Emori, you only say yes if you feel like you want to try it. Ok?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded so Jackson got up and left the room. When he came back, he was holding a basket and a few pamphlets.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. So, the biggest thing I believe would help is having Emori go to weekly therapy sessions, with either me, or Dr. Santiago. If Emori’s bedwetting is tied to past trauma, it would be for the best to work and try and help her get past that trauma. If she got to a point where she was in a good place in regards to getting through some of that trauma, her bedwetting would probably lessen or stop.” He said as he handed some pamphlets over to the two.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Clarke, you and John have gone through traumas too, and I believe if you two went to therapy as well, we’d be able to help all of you, and if something alarming came up in any of these individual sessions, maybe a family session would be needed. First though, I’d like to focus on Emori.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded and continued to look at the pamphlet she was holding.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you say Baby Girl? Would you like to do therapy? It might really help you.” Clarke asked, wanting Emori to know that this decision was hers and hers alone.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If it will help, I think we should try it.” Emori said, after a moment of contemplation. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke smiled at Emori, proud of her for coming to the decision by herself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jackson nodded, happy to hear it too. “We’ll schedule an appointment as soon as we can to get started.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s the other thing that we can do?” Emori then asked, since Jackson had said there were two things to help her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now Emori, this is another decision that will be up to you.” Jackson said, grabbing a folded cloth from the basket he had.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Until these therapy sessions really start to help you, I feel like it might help if you wear some sort of protection when you sleep at night.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Like......diapers?” Emori asked slowly, not really liking what she was hearing. She was apprehensive about this suggestion, because she felt like this might secure an idea that she was a helpless baby and she did not want others to think of her like she’s a baby.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Emori. There is nothing wrong with utilizing protection for when you sleep at night. Also, since this protects the bed, this keeps these incidences more private. If the bed isn’t wet, John, Clarke, or anyone else won’t be able to tell that you had an accident. Now, I know you will probably tell Clarke, but it also cuts back on clean up and laundry. It is a lot easier to wash cloth diapers than it is to have to do a whole set of bedding.” Jackson said, not wanting to convince Emori, but trying to give her all the pros so she had all the information.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who would know?” Emori asked, turning to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I feel if you wanted to wear the new underwear, I would know, John would know because he lives and sleeps with us, Raven and Echo would have to find out eventually because they sometimes help take care of you, and as your doctor, Jackson would know. Nobody else will know unless you tell them and everyone that does know will keep it a secret. Only you can decide who you want to know.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded and kept thinking about it. The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like an ok idea. If it was kept private and barely anyone knew, life would pretty much stay the same. Plus, if it helped protect the bed better, it would be less work for Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can we try them and if I don’t like </span>
  <span>them,</span>
  <span> we can stop?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We can do it however you want Baby. Whatever makes you the most comfortable.” Clarke said slowly, wanting Emori to call the shots and make the big decision for herself. It would be her wearing the diapers anyway, so it’s not like this was a decision that Clarke could make for her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think I want to try them.” She said after a moment, feeling safe and knowing that Clarke would always support her, especially with something like this.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. We can try them and see if they help.” Clarke said gently, smiling at Emori.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now Clarke, there is something that you can also do to help Emori as well. Does she have a bed time?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes. Usually John and Emori go to bed at 9 and I go to bed at 11:30.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. That works. Before Emori goes to bed at night, I want you to have her use the restroom. Then, when you go up to bed, I want you to wake Emori up and have her use the restroom again. That way this can help prevent potential accidents, and if she does have an accident it won’t be as big as it could be.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded, taking the information in.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I will give you all this for Emori, and I want you to talk with John about potentially having him attend therapy sessions, and later in the week we can schedule some stuff.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sounds good. Thank </span>
  <span>you, Jackson</span>
  <span>.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No problem. Thanks for coming in.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>With that, the two went back to the farm house and Clarke called a family meeting, so they could talk with Murphy too.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After explaining everything that went on at the appointment, Clarke switched gears and asked Murphy his opinion on therapy.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>So,</span>
  <span> John, do you think that therapy sessions would be helpful to you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think they would. Maybe I can start working past all the stuff that happened with Charlotte at the drop ship and Ontari and all that stuff.” He said, and Clarke nodded, knowing that the trauma he </span>
  <span>experienced</span>
  <span> the first few days on the ground still stuck with him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think therapy would work for all of us. I’ll talk to Jackson to schedule appointments for all three of us and hopefully this can help us become better and closer as a family.” She said, cuddling the two against her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now John,” she said after a moment, “I’ve been told that the first day Emori had an accident, you said something mean to her. That you told her ‘Why can’t you go in the toilet like an adult?’ and that hurt her.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What? No, I didn-” John started before cutting himself off and thinking back. Clarke could see the moment of realization on his face when he realized that he did say that, and she could see him regretting it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori I am so sorry. I did not mean to say that. Oh my God I am so sorry.” He said sincerely, and Clarke knew he meant it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you didn’t mean it. It was early when I woke you up and you were tired. You probably didn’t even remember saying it until we brought it up now.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Will you ever forgive me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I already have. I know you didn’t mean it and I know that you regret it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy pulled Emori into a hug then and gave her a kiss, before turning to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke, am I going to get punished?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, not this time. I can see that it was a legitimate mistake and you feel sorry about your actions. But, if I ever hear that there is a next time, I will scrub your mouth out. We are not mean about medical issues in this home. Do you understand?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” He said quickly, understanding completely.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good. Now, I have some work to do with Indra today, to help get </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span> ready for the move to Earth. Today is a free day for you, go have fun and do what you want, and I will be in the palace if you need me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Later that night Clarke helped Emori with all the tools Jackson gave them to help and all three went to bed, hopeful of how they were going to make their futures better. </span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Memori Fight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Murphy and Emori say some nasty things to each other. It's up to Clarke to try and fix it.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Emori skipped happily next to Echo as they made their way to the school. Today, the two were going to help out with the preschoolers, and since it was the first time in a little while that she’s been able to spend the day with just Echo, she was really excited.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>At least she was until Murphy decided to tag along.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Echo, can I help too?” He asked, as they walked closer to the school. He was bored and wanted something to do.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Before Echo could even respond, Emori turned towards John and answered instead. “No. It’s just me and Echo today.” She said, her voice hard. She didn’t want John to join because it hadn’t been her and Echo for some time and she did not want him coming in and ruining the fun.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on Emori, I want to help too.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.” She snapped, and looked at Echo, hoping or help. </span>
  <span>Unfortunately</span>
  <span> for her, John was thinking the same thing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Echo......please?” He asked, putting on his cute little puppy dog eyes and pulling his lip out into an adorable pout.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I mean, I don’t see why not......” Echo said, not realizing that Emori really wanted to just spend time with her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Noooo</span>
  <span>!” Emori started to whine, stomping her foot against the ground. “I don’t want him! He’ll just hurt the kids!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean?” Echo asked, confused. “John has never ever hurt any child all the times he’s helped at the school.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why are you being so unfair Emmy?” John also asked, confused and hurt as to why she was so hell bent on excluding him. “At least I want to help out and lighten the load so it’s not just you guys helping watch the kids.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At least I’ve never caused a kid’s death!” Emori snapped, referring to Charlotte committing suicide a few days after the drop ship landed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John paused and blinked, his face twisting in anger when he let out his biting response.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“At least my parents wanted me.” He spat, and though he knew it was a low blow, and Emori was extremely sensitive about the topic of her parents, he felt a little warmth of satisfaction when he saw her face drop. </span>
  <em>
    <span>There, I bet she doesn’t feel so high and mighty now</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He thought, believing that it was good for her to be knocked down a few pegs. She did start it any ways.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Echo looked at Emori and saw the shorter girl’s face turn a deep red, before crumpling, a few lone tears falling. Emori was upset and John looked very angry too. His face was red and Echo thought that he almost looked like those things they saw on the ring every once in a while, cartoon characters, and the look would be complete if he had steam coming out of his ears.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok. Neither of you are helping at the school.” She said, before grabbing Emori’s hand and then grabbing John’s and pulling them to the farm house. Clarke was standing at the counter chopping some cucumbers when they walked in, and she looked up when she heard the tell-tale sounds of Emori crying.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She saw Echo looking slightly irritated and she knew that something had happened.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s wrong?” She asked, addressing Echo. She wasn’t even really paying attention to Murphy and Emori because she could see that Emori looked incredibly upset and John looked angry. If she wanted an unbiased opinion of what happened, she needed to hear it from Echo.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, go up to the bedroom and sit on the bed. Emori, sit on the couch.” Echo said, waiting for the two to do as told and once they did, she turned to Clarke. “Let’s go into your office.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After getting the story from Echo, the brunette left to go to the school and Clarke walked over to the stairs.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, come down here please.” She called before sitting next to Emori on the couch. John joined them after a minute and Clarke had him sit on the other side, so she was sitting in between her too brooding subs.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, according to Echo, you two both said something nasty to each other. I am very disappointed to hear that you’ve been fighting, and felt the need to resort to hurtful insults. Now, Echo already told me what happened, so I don’t need a recap, but I still want to talk it out and give you both a chance to explain why you felt the need to say what you said. Do you understand me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” They both said, and Emori turned to face John right away.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, I am so sorry. I shouldn’t have ever said that to you or brought up Charlotte, even if it was indirectly. I just wanted to spend the day where it was just me and Echo, because it hasn’t been just us for a while. Plus, since you tagged along with me and Raven yesterday, I just wanted it to be a me and Echo day. I regret what I said to you and I don’t believe it. I am sorry that I said it and I hope that you can eventually forgive me.” Emori said, tears still lining her eyes. Clarke could just tell that Emori felt bad, and that she regretted her actions. Her apology was a genuine one, and she was proud of her girl for taking responsibility and explaining her side without shifting blame.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John nodded after a moment and looked at Emori. “I accept your apology.” Was all he said, and then they just sat there in the silence, until Clarke picked the conversation back up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, don’t you have something to say to Emori?” She asked, trying to coax him into apologizing and explaining himself next.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. I meant what I said and she deserved it. She started the whole thing anyway.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori gasped, and Clarke frowned at John. “You meant what you said?” She asked, the disappointment in her tone evident.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I mean it’s not like I lied. Emori’s parents didn’t want her or love her. We all know that. My parents at least wanted me, even if my dad died and my mom became abusive, at least my parents looked at me when I was born and decided to keep me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, what you said hurt Emori’s feelings. That’s why you need to apologize.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. She deserved it. I am not saying sorry for something that I’m not sorry about.” John snapped, his voice sassy.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>At this point, Emori’s crying had started to get stronger and this reaction only caused John to roll his eyes at her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“For God sakes Emori, if you’re </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> cry like a baby, you might as well go upstairs and put one of your diapers on.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that was the final straw.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John Murphy. That is enough.” Clarke scolded, before pointing to the stairs. “Go up to the green room. Maybe a nap will help cure you of some of your meanness.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John rolled his eyes again and let out a huff of breath in response, but he obeyed Clarke and went up to the green room. The house had many guest bedrooms, and each room had different colored sheets and blankets on the bed. The green room had green blankets, and that’s where Clarke sent John.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The dominant sighed, before turning to Emori. She felt bad for the girl. First, she made a big mistake but owned up to it and apologized, doing everything she could to try and make it right. Then, even after accepting her apology, John continued to insult her, especially about things that made her uncomfortable. The topic of her parents already hit a sore spot, but the mention of her diapers made it worse.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Because Emori didn’t like the stigma around diapers, Clarke made sure that in their house, they called them her “Night time Underwear” instead, and never implied or used connotations that the undergarments were for babies, or were babyish to wear. The fact that John ignored both rules and implied that crying connected with the diapers and made her a baby, and the fact that he used the “D” word, only made matters worse.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy Doodle, I think you should take a nap too.” She said quietly, rubbing her girl’s back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Trouble?” Emori asked, looking up and giving Clarke one of the saddest </span>
  <span>expressions</span>
  <span> the blonde’s ever seen.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No Sweetie, you are not in trouble. A nap is not a punishment. I just think you’re getting overwhelmed and you need to recharge your batteries.” Clarke explained, helping Emori stand. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How about you go upstairs to the purple room, and I’ll bring Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> so you can take a nap?” She suggested, hoping Emori would cooperate.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Luckily, the brunette seemed eager to take a nap, so she went up right away, and Clarke made her way to the second floor, entering the master bedroom.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>First, she went into the master bathroom and grabbed one of Emori’s diapers and a comfy nightgown that she knew the girl liked to wear. She also grabbed Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> before leaving the room and making her way down the hall, to the purple room.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The second Clarke entered the room, Emori locked eyes on the diaper and she immediately burst into tears again. As a response, Clarke quickly handed over Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span>, and gave Emori a gentle kiss on the forehead, sad to see her girlfriend sob into her comfort object.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know you don’t usually wear during the day for naps, and I know you’ve been doing really well at night, but you’re upset, and I feel that the events of this morning could trigger a stress response. I want you to wear one for this nap so we can be prepared. I’d rather be safe than sorry Emmy.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded and tried to relax, knowing that Clarke wasn’t making her wear the diaper as a punishment. Her reasoning made sense, and the knowledge of the garment protecting her might allow her to relax further, and actually get a good nap in. It was just embarrassing for her, because ever since she had started therapy with Jackson five weeks prior, she was making good progress. In fact, it’s been almost two weeks since she’s had a sleeping accident, and she was afraid that this event would cause her to relapse and she’d be right back at square one. It truly wasn’t fair.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke gave Emori another kiss and gently went to work, removing the brunette’s shirt and putting the nightgown over her head. She then had Emori lay down on the bed and raise her hips, so Clarke could gently take off her pants and panties, and pin the diaper around her waist. Once the garment was secure, Clarke lowered the nightgown and tucked Emori in, giving her one last kiss before leaving the room and going to check on John.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She found him lying on the bed in the green room, pouting. She knew he wasn’t happy at all but she still had to talk to him about his behavior.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You know, I am very disappointed that you handled that conversation that way.” She started, coming in and sitting on the bed beside John.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She had no right to say anything about Charlotte. She wasn’t even there when it happened!”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know.” Clarke said, understanding completely. The entire Charlotte situation was unfair to John 100%. However, Clarke also believed that it was slightly more unfair that he used her parents against her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I understand that you think that it was unfair of Emori to use the Charlotte situation, and I do believe it was too, but you do have to understand that John, you did have a choice during that time. You didn’t have to go after Charlotte, but you chose to anyways. I understand that you were letting anger and adrenaline take over instead of your common sense, but even if you didn’t push Charlotte off that cliff, you still actively decided to go after her, with the goal of finding her and killing her.” Clarke reminded.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So? What’s that have to do with anything?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“While what Emori said to you was unfair, I feel like it was more unfair for you to talk about her parents in the way that you did. Remember, with Charlotte, you made a choice. Emori was only less than an hour old when her parents took her out to the woods to abandon her. She didn’t have a choice or a say. Her parents made a choice, but there was nothing that she could do to sway them. Emori had no control over being conceived or born, she had no control over how her hand turned out, and she had no control over her parents abandoning her, and your insult, to me at least, made it seem like you were implying that it was all Emori’s fault that her parents didn’t want her. It wasn’t her fault; it was her family’s fault that they didn’t want to accept her.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John sat there for a moment in silence, not knowing what to say. He hadn’t thought of it from that angle before.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know that Jackson has all of us keep journals for us to jot down anything we want to talk about in therapy and even though I would never force you to read anything that you’ve written to me, Emori sometimes will read her journal to me, and do you know what her number one concern is right now, what she is really afraid of?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She’s afraid that we’re </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> get tired of her eventually and get rid of her.” Clarke said simply. “I mean, obviously that’s never going to happen, but she is afraid of it and what you said to her today might make her feel more paranoid about it. Like you said earlier, yeah, your dad might have died when you were a kid and your mom might have become abusive, but as a baby, when the majority of trust is built, your parents wanted you, and loved you. Emori never had that John. When Baylis found </span>
  <span>her,</span>
  <span> he took her in because he saw free labor. Later as a child she was abused and molested. She experienced things that no child should ever experience.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But I was abused too. She’s not special.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not saying that she is. This isn’t a “who had the worst childhood contest” John. The fact in the matter is that Emori hadn’t had the opportunity to build that trust as a baby like you did. She was only taken advantage of. And you used that against her to make her feel bad.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I still feel like she deserved to be taken down a few pegs. She had no right to act like an entitled brat and blow up at me like she was a toddler.” John said, still trying to somewhat justify his actions.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I agree that Emori shouldn’t have blown up, but that’s another thing that she’s working on John. You know she’s stunted emotionally when it comes to problem solving and trying to explain herself at times. She never lived in an environment where someone taught her how to properly regulate her emotions. Sometimes she doesn’t know how to handle things and you trying to butt your way in was making her overwhelmed. Plus, you kind of pinned this on her as you were walking to the school. You should have asked her at breakfast.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I guess I should have.” John said after a moment, realizing that Clarke was probably right.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, I know what you said to Emori about her parents was driven out of anger and it was a spur of the moment thing. But I am extremely disappointed in you for telling her that it was babyish to cry, and that you used the word diaper instead of night time underwear like we always say. You know how she feels about her bedwetting. And to use that as an insult, I should paddle you right here for it.” Clarke scolded, angrier at that than the initial ‘parents’ insult. “How many times do I have to tell you two that we do not make fun of medical conditions in this household?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry Miss Clarke. I truly wasn’t thinking. I won’t do it again.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re damn right you won’t do it again, if you </span>
  <span>do,</span>
  <span> I’ll have to paddle you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, for your punishment for this, I want you to write down in your journal all that you said to Emori and I want you to talk to Jackson about it at your next therapy session. Do you understand?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now, before I tuck you in for a nap, I need to know, why did you feel the need to tag along with the girls today?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t know, I guess I just wanted something fun to do.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I understand.” Clarke said quietly, nodding. “However, do you at least understand Emori’s side? All the times this week that she’s spent with either me, Raven, or Echo, you’ve tagged along and joined in. Can you understand why she’d get frustrated if she was planning on having it just be her and Echo and then you come by to join in again? It’s not that you being around is a bad thing, and you know Emori loves you to pieces, but we all need our space sometimes.” Clarke explained, and after a moment, John nodded in understanding.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess I didn’t really take Emori’s side into consideration.” He said quietly, and Clarke smiled, happy he was coming to the conclusion himself. “Miss Clarke, I need to apologize to her.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m glad to hear that you want to apologize but she’s napping right now. It’ll have to wait until she’s up and ready to sit down with you again.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am. Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes?” </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Whenever nap time is over, can you wake me up first? I’d like to make Emori a special lunch as a part of my apology.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s fine.” Clarke said quietly, before getting up and tucking John in. “Take a nap and cool down a bit. Think about what we’ve talked about.” She instructed, before leaving the room to let him sleep.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>While the two were asleep, Clarke worked around the house for a bit before retreating to her office to get some official work done. Within the next five months, everyone that hadn’t gone to earth already would be making the official move from Sanctum and there was a lot of work taking place to get things ready.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>About half of the people on Sanctum were already on Earth, working to construct simple villages and things like a school and hospital to help get the community up and running while the remaining half stayed on Sanctum to finish out the final crop harvests and getting </span>
  <span>everything</span>
  <span> all closed up before it was time to leave. Clarke had a lot of work to do before she and the last of the people on the planet left for good.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>An hour and a half later, Clarke went back up to the green room to wake Murphy up, letting him use the kitchen to make a special apology lunch for Emori. She was glad that he understood that he hurt her feelings, and wanted to apologize.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>While he was doing that, Clarke went to the purple room to check on her girl, not at all surprised to see Emori </span>
  <span>lying</span>
  <span> in bed awake, crying.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, my Baby Doll, why are there tears?” She cooed, coming over and giving Emori a kiss.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry! It was an accident!” Emori sputtered, and Clarke knew what that meant. She slowly peeled the blankets back and gave Emori a look of pity when she saw that along with a soaked diaper, the bedding was wet as well. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s ok. Nothing a bath and the washing machine can’t fix.” Clarke said gently, giving Emori another kiss and carrying her out of the purple room to the master bathroom. While she got the bath ready, she watched her girlfriend stand to the side, wrapping her arms around herself and not making eye contact.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke knew that this embarrassed Emori, and she also knew that the brunette probably felt a large level of shame since this was her first accident in two weeks, and now at therapy she’d have to tell Jackson that she relapsed again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You know Sweetie, relapses can happen whether we want them to or not. You went through something very upsetting this morning and it’s valid to expect something like this to happen. I am not mad at you, Jackson won’t be mad at you when he does the next progress report, you did nothing wrong my Angel.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?” Emori asked, her voice small.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Princess?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you take a bath with me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course.” Clarke said immediately, wanting to provide Emori comfort in any way that she could. If Emori wanted to take a bath together, then they’d take a bath together.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After the two got into the tub and Clarke cleaned Emori up, the two sat together, Emori leaning against Clarke, and Clarke snuggling her girl close to her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Was it me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Was it something I did that made my parents not love me? What did I do wrong? What could I have done that could have let them love me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, Hug Bug......” Clarke said, before sighing and pulling the brunette closer to her. “Baby, first and foremost, there is nothing that you did and nothing you could have done to make your parents react otherwise. They were just pieces of shit that let their prejudices get in the way of their love.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The topic of Emori’s parents always made Clarke’s blood boil and almost always made her cry if she thought about it for too long. She just couldn’t understand how someone could carry a baby for nine months, go through hours of labor and pushing and then just not love the baby to pieces when they see it. Clarke couldn’t understand how it was possible for someone to look at Emori and not love her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, your parent’s actions reflected them as individuals, not you. You had no choice or say in the decision that was made and it is not your fault that you were born into a society that only valued who they deemed fit.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is it wrong of me to wish that I could meet my parents? Like I don’t want to get to know them or forgive them or anything. I just wish I had an opportunity where I could look them in the eyes and ask them why I wasn’t good enough for them. Is that wrong of me to sometimes want that?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, of course not. It’s normal to want answers of the unknown. It’s perfectly fine and normal for you to feel that way.” Clarke said quietly, kissing Emori’s hair.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I hate them. I hope they never had </span>
  <span>any more</span>
  <span> babies after me as a punishment for not accepting and loving the gift they were given.” Emori said harshly, and Clarke did not blame her. In fact, she agreed with her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke had a firm belief that all babies were a gift and blessing for a family that should not be wasted or given away. Maybe it came from living on the Ark where only one child was allowed so parents were almost always happy with what they got. Also, families had to fill out questionaries before they were even considered or allowed to get the birth control implant removed and try. If they weren’t going to be accepting of a disabled baby, a baby of a certain gender or a baby who could be a part of the LGBT community, they wouldn’t be allowed to even try for a child. The Ark put those rules in place to hopefully create a loving environment for all the children born, but of course, some exceptions slipped through the cracks and abuse did happen, both John and Raven could vouch for that.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke also would never tell Emori this, but once everyone had somewhat settled on Sanctum, she asked Jackson to perform a DNA test on all members of </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span>, to try and see if any member of Emori’s family was in the bunker. Luckily, there were no matches, but if there had been, Clarke either would have ordered their deaths or intimidated them to never come near Emori ever. She was </span>
  <span>Wanheda</span>
  <span> after all, if anyone had that type of power, it was her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m glad I lived long enough to find you. You and John are a way better family than those people are anyways.” </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s very true. Our love is unconditional. There aren’t any rules or limits.” Clarke said, agreeing with Emori.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two sat for </span>
  <span>a while</span>
  <span> in silence, before Clarke decided to check in.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How are you feeling Sweetie? Better than this morning?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A lot better.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s good to hear. How would you feel about some lunch?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori nodded and smiled, causing Clarke to smile too. The blonde went to work then with draining the tub and drying Emori off. After she dried herself </span>
  <span>off,</span>
  <span> she quickly got dressed and went into the master bedroom to pick an outfit for her girlfriend. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Emori?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I am sorry for starting this whole thing, and making a mess in the bed.” The brunette said as the blonde helped her dress.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, there’s no need to apologize about the bedwetting. As for the fight, I’d like you to write about it in your therapy journal and talk to Jackson about it. You didn’t have to blow up at John at first like that, you two could have come to some kind of </span>
  <span>compromise</span>
  <span>, but I also know that you are working on that with Jackson, so I want you to bring it up.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke.” She said, and she followed the blonde downstairs, growing excited when she saw John had surprised her with a bowl of buttered noodles, her favorite comfort meal.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emori, I’m really sorry for how I treated you.” He started and the two sat down at the table. While Emori ate, John explained himself and apologized again, being sincere, and by the time lunch was over, Clarke was happy to see that both </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span> had worked it out and weren’t mad at each other anymore.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>A few hours later, while John and Emori were playing video games, Clarke invited Echo and Raven over and the three were talking.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>So,</span>
  <span> how’d you get them to make up? Did you have to punish them?” Echo asked, concerned over how the events went after she left.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Actually, it’s surprising how much a talk and a nap can help. I think they just needed time to calm down and rest and then having someone talk calmly to them, but also let them talk and know that I am listening, really helps with these kinds of things.” Clarke explained.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If anyone can break up a fight and have everyone make up, it’s you Clarke.” Raven said, laughing as she took a sip of wine.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <span>Ain’t</span>
  <span> that the truth.” Echo said, before laughing as well.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke joined them in their laughter, and the three ladies went on to talk for the rest of the evening.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Toothache</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After checking in with Emori, Clarke is made aware that John isn't feeling good.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Clarke walked up to the master bedroom in the farmhouse and smiled at the </span>
  <span>silhouettes</span>
  <span> of her </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span> in the shadowy darkness of the bedroom. It was almost midnight, and she had tucked them in nearly three hours ago. She was coming to bed a little later than usual, but that’s because she was still very busy with the moving plans from Sanctum to Earth. In two months, all of the people who weren’t already on Earth would be going, and Clarke had to make sure everything was done perfectly. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was midnight though, so after getting ready for bed, she slowly walked into the room. She quietly got on the bed and hovered over Emori, who always slept in the middle, and placed her hand on her girl’s stomach, lightly rubbing her belly.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy Baby, wake up.” She whispered gently, happy when she saw the brunette’s eyes flutter open.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wha?” She asked, her voice laced with sleep.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Emmy Doodle, you know the drill.” Clarke said softly, trying not to wake Murphy. Emori nodded and slowly made her way out of bed. Clarke was right, she did know the drill. It’s been about three months now since Jackson prescribed diapers, or “night time underwear” as the family called them, to help Emori with her constant bedwetting accidents. Over time, Emori’s doing really well, and has gone from having an accident almost every night to only having one or two every three weeks or so. It was a major accomplishment for her and both Clarke and Murphy were so proud of her progress.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Along with the undergarments, another way Clarke helped with Emori’s progress was Jackson advised that before going to bed, it’d be wise for Emori to use the toilet and then a few hours later, when Clarke came to bed, Jackson told her it might be best to wake Emori, and take her to the toilet again, so she can go. That way, there’s less in her bladder and will help prevent accidents, and it also ensures that if she still ends up having an accident later in the night, it isn’t as big as it could be simply because her bladder isn’t as full.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Emori and Clarke went into the bathroom together and the blonde helped undo the night time underwear, before sitting Emori on the toilet. For the two girls, modesty wasn’t really a thing at night. Even if she usually preferred privacy during the day, Emori wanted Clarke in the bathroom with her while she went at night, simply because she was afraid to do it herself. Clarke knew that if Emori grew up on the Ark, or at least under regular circumstances in a village, she definitely would have been one of those kids that was afraid of the dark, or be convinced that were monsters under the bed or in the closet. She just didn’t like the dark that much and Clarke wasn’t going to risk upsetting her when she didn’t mind much at all anyway. As long as Emori was ok with it, Clarke was perfectly fine with accompanying her girl to the bathroom.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After Emori did her business, she cleaned herself off and flushed, before going to wash her hands. While she was drying them, Clarke </span>
  <span>attached</span>
  <span> her underwear around her waist and dressed her again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There. I bet you feel much better.” Clarke said, pressing a kiss to Emori’s forehead. The brunette had gone a lot, and Clarke was glad that it was taken care of.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke. Much better.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m glad to hear that.” Clarke finished, and that was all she spoke on it. She and John had an unspoken agreement that while it was ok to be proud of Emori’s progress with her recovery and therapy, they were not going to infantilize her or praise her when she made it to the toilet without any incidents happening. Considering that Emori was already fully toilet trained and this was only done as a precaution, Clarke couldn’t think of anything more embarrassing than Emori just doing her business and then having someone praise her for doing it, when it’s something she’s been doing for as long as she can remember.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The last thing Clarke was going to do was smile at Emori and tell her she was so glad she “made it to the potty like a big girl,” because to her, that would be humiliating, and it’s the last thing Emori needs. Plus, just because Emori wanted Clarke to accompany her to the bathroom, doesn’t give Clarke an all access pass to baby her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright Baby. Grab Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> and snuggle down for a big sleep.” She said softly, since they were now back in the bedroom and Clarke didn’t want to wake Murphy.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As soon as she got Emori settled, Clarke was about to get into bed herself when a voice startled her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?” John asked, his voice sounding a bit timid.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Baby?” She asked, not even bothering to question why he wasn’t sleeping. If he needed her for something, she would be there for him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I hurt.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You hurt? Where do you hurt John?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My mouth in my </span>
  <span>teeth</span>
  <span>.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Your teeth hurt?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Miss Clarke.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s go in the bathroom, so I can look in your mouth.” Clarke said quietly, and followed John into the bathroom, shutting the door behind them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok, which one hurts?” Clarke asked, grabbing a pen light and turning it on. Murphy pointed to one of his bottom teeth towards the back and Clarke shined the light in his mouth, after instructing him to keep it open.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The moment she saw his tooth, she could see why he was hurting.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>John had a cavity.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, your tooth hurts because you have a tiny cavity.” She said simply, turning the light off and seeing the fear in his eyes.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s ok Baby. You've been eating more sugar than usual. We can go to Dr. Smith tomorrow and he can fix it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Dr. Smith was a dentist from the Eligius team. He was imprisoned before ALIE set the bombs off because he had been running an opioid trafficking ring out of his dentist office, but that was over 200 years ago by now and he was a really good dentist.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But Miss Clarke, how can this happen? I brush my teeth twice a day really good.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you floss John?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No........not like how I should.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That probably helped contribute. It’s ok though John. Sometimes people have different teeth than others and no matter how much they care for their teeth, cavities can happen. We’ll see Dr. Smith tomorrow; he’ll fix it and we can move on with a better routine for your teeth.” She said, before going to the medicine cabinet and grabbing some pain medicine.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll give you two for the pain so you can sleep tonight, and then we’ll get it all fixed tomorrow.” She said quietly, handing the pills over and watching him take them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s go to bed then, shall we?” Clarke asked as she led Murphy back to bed, getting in herself after he was all settled.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The next morning after breakfast, Clarke took Murphy to see Dr. Smith and after a quick look and a teeth cleaning, he went right to work with taking care of his cavity. Clarke could tell that Murphy didn’t like it, especially when the dentist had to give him a shot in his gums, and she knew that even if the initial tooth pain was cleared after the filling went in, he’d still be uncomfortable and probably want cuddles for the rest of the day.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And she was perfectly fine with that.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After the appointment was over and his tooth was fixed, Clarke took Murphy back to the farmhouse and the two sat on the sofa in the living room together. Clarke could tell he was in distress and knew that her boy needed some good cuddles.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Sweetie?” she asked once they were all snuggled up next to each other.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thanks for not being mad. Or yelling about my teeth today. Or blaming me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh Honey, it’s not your fault. Sometimes this stuff happens in life. Sure, you might have to alter your routine and try flossing better, but that is stuff that we can work on. One little cavity isn’t the end of the world. Plus, I am very proud of you for telling me that your tooth hurt, instead of waiting until it was really bad. We got that cavity right at the beginning and fixed it before it could become worse. Also, it’s never too late to start taking better care of yourself. As long as you try your best and come to me when you feel you need help, I’ll always be proud of you and love you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you, Miss Clarke. I love you too.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke smiled and kissed Murphy’s forehead before bring him into an extra tight hug, holding him close.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you, John, for trusting me enough to feel that you could come to me, and even though you were worried of the possibility of me being unhappy, you still trusted me enough to tell me when something was wrong and I really appreciate that you came to me last night.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That was easy Miss Clarke, besides Emori, you’re the person I trust the most.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My Sweetie. Thank you.” She responded, before kissing his temple and bringing him close. For the rest of the morning the two cuddled, until lunch time came and Emori joined them as well.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. The Words That Will Haunt You</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Clarke has to pay the price when she fucks up big time</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>TW various instances of self harm including cutting, self deprecating language, and ignoring safewords</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It was an early Fall day on Earth. Murphy was sitting in the little house he shared with Clarke and Emori and he was bored. It was raining outside, and of course Clarke had them inside. It’s been almost a year since everyone made the final move from Sanctum to Earth and everything has gone well. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The house that was constructed for them was tiny, especially in comparison to the farm house on Sanctum. They had a two-room structure, with a bedroom and a slightly bigger main room, which doubled as a kitchen and living space. The bedroom was big enough to hold their bed, a dresser, and a tub for bathing, and that was pretty much their house. They had room for a garden outside and an outhouse, but that was the extent to the plot of land allotted to them.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since they were stuck in the house due to the rain, Murphy was bored. It was just after supper and Emori went into the bedroom to lay down, and Clarke had started working on some paper work at the table. She was one of the leaders on Earth, just like she had been on Sanctum, and there was always work to do.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Today she was looking at new drafts of a government agreement, similar to what the Constitution was for America before Apocalypse 1, because they had three communities that kind of lived separately, but also together.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>There were less than 1000 people on Earth split into three groups. The first community, which was centered around where the tower in Polis was, comprised of </span>
  <span>Wonkru</span>
  <span> and the group from the Ring. Two miles to the East of the community boarders, was the village where the remaining members of the Eligius team resided. The third community, which was four miles north from the other two was where the people of Sanctum lived. While they were separated by group, they were all allies, and got along well with each other.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When the three communities had to meet to discuss things, like this new agreement for example, they’d come to </span>
  <span>Wonkru’s</span>
  <span> community, and the meetings would take place in the bunker. The bunker was also used to house everyone if there was severe weather like a hurricane, and it was also used for emergency storage as needed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even though it’s been a year since the last of the human race left Sanctum and came to Earth, a lot of the democratic steps in regards to community building had to be held off briefly. Once arriving on Earth, the two biggest objectives were to build houses and other structures, and to get a variety of crops planted for food. Now that those tasks were for the most part taken care </span>
  <span>of;</span>
  <span> it was time to move on to the other needed factors of community building. It was time to organize a government and get an official set of rules between the communities worked out and legalized.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Because of this, Clarke has been working almost every night, and while she wasn’t flat out neglecting Emori and Murphy, she still wasn’t spending as much time with them as they, and she’d, like. Clarke was also more stressed at times like these, and often grew </span>
  <span>more impatient and snappier</span>
  <span>, lashing out if something goes wrong or if she gets </span>
  <span>interrupted</span>
  <span>. Unfortunately for Murphy, he was going to experience some of that very soon.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Since there wasn’t really anything to do, Murphy was really bored. Emori was already in bed for the night, because she had been helping Raven with some mechanical stuff all day, and was exhausted. He didn’t really mind that, he wanted Emori to rest so he obviously wasn’t going to bother her, but he wanted to spend time with Clarke, even if it was just having a conversation with her, since it was later in the evening and there wasn’t much time to do anything else.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Miss Clarke?” He asked, just wanting to have a conversation with someone.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes John?” She asked, not looking up from her papers. Her voice had a specific tone to it, as if she was absent minded, and not really paying attention to him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can we do something for a bit?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, I’m very busy right now. I’m sorry, but I can’t.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But you’re always busy.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, I said no. I’m sorry if I’m always busy to you, but I have to do my part as a leader to make sure that everyone has a quality life on Earth. Now stop bothering me and do something to entertain yourself.” She said, her voice hardening. It was very easy to see that she was getting irritated, but John decided to try one more time.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But it’s boring by myself. I want to do something with you.” He said, and he realized that he might have pushed it too far when Clarke sighed and practically slammed her pencil down.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jesus Christ John! I said no! Can you stop being annoying for like five seconds? I bet that’s why your dad stole that medicine in the first place. He knew it wouldn’t do anything to help you, but he stole it anyways so he’d get caught and not be around you anymore. You probably annoyed him so God damn much that it was probably a relief to him when he was floated.” She snapped, turning and giving Murphy a brief icy glare. Five seconds later she looked back to her papers, shook her head and went back to what she was doing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy stood there, shocked. He had no idea what to say. He had recoiled as if he had been slapped, and he could feel a heaviness grow in his chest, as if his heart and lungs were replaced with an anvil and it was pounding away, making it harder for him to breathe.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He had no idea what to do, but he knew he wasn’t going to confront Clarke any further. Instead, he sat down by the fireplace and kept his eyes trained on the steady flames. Clarke had brought up one of things he was always scared of. He was afraid of being annoying, or a bother, burdening others with his existence. Now that it was confirmed that Clarke saw him as a burden, he wondered if Emori, Raven, and Echo felt the same way and were just tolerating him to be nice. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Probably</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
  <em>
    <span>I bet they’d get rid of me without a second thought if they were given the</span>
  </em>
  
  <em>
    <span>opportunity</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He thought, sitting and staring at the fire. He sat for another thirty minutes before getting up and going into the bedroom, wanting to just go to bed. He’d rather go to bed early and be in the company of Emori, than sit by himself while Clarke sat at the table, risking more hostility if he tried to talk to her again.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As soon as he shut the bedroom door behind him, he turned and smiled at Emori, who was fast asleep on the bed. She was sprawled out in the middle, and Tug </span>
  <span>Tug</span>
  <span> was covering half of her face. Despite the rain, it was a hot day, so the brunette was laying in only a tank top and her panties, with the covers kicked down to the end of the bed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy was so proud of Emori, and the progress that she has made in the past year and a half. Her therapy appointments with Jackson have helped her immensely, and it’s been about eleven months since she had an accident in the bed while she slept. Clarke had stopped waking her in the middle of the night to use the restroom about ten months ago, and she stopped wearing her “Night Time Underwear” to bed about eight months ago. The little family still kept them for just in case, but Murphy didn’t think they’d need them anymore, unless something extremely traumatic happened to Emori and she had a relapse, or if she got very sick.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Murphy very quietly got dressed in his pajamas and got in bed beside Emori, smiling to himself when he felt her instinctively snuggle closer to him in her sleep. That little bit of comfort that he felt from that action was enough to calm him down somewhat, allowing him to drift off to sleep before Clarke came into the bedroom.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The next morning, Murphy woke up a bit later than usual and wasn’t surprised when Emori and Clarke were already up and busy for the day. He got dressed and ate breakfast by himself, before leaving the little house and trying to think of what to do.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The last thing he wanted to was bother anyone, since according to Clarke, that was the only thing he was good at. He wanted to do tasks on his own, to make sure that he was still helping out in the community some way, without bothering anyone else. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The first thing Murphy did, was go around in the woods and look for some sticks and branches, little pieces of firewood that were already on the ground, and didn’t require chopping a tree down. Unlike the farm house on Sanctum, the little house on Earth didn’t rely on a furnace, it was more primitive and relied on fire for heat. There were two fireplaces in the house, one in the main room and one in the bedroom though the bedroom one was only used in the winter when it got really cold.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>People in the community were doing some logging, to make sure that everyone had the firewood that they needed, but Murphy was always worried that it wouldn’t be enough, so Clarke had always told him that he could grab any piece of wood off the ground in the woods and bring it home if it made him more comfortable.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After walking around the woods and gathering smaller branches and sticks for twenty minutes, Murphy made his way down to one of the lakes near the community. There were some bigger bodies of water where fishing was done, but this lake was smaller, and hidden. Everyone knew of its existence of course, but it wasn’t visited that often. That made it the perfect place for Murphy to rest, because he knew nobody would be by to bother him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As he sat, he started to dig into his forearm with his fingernails, wanting to punish himself. He felt incredibly guilty. He knew it was all his fault for making Clarke snap like she did, and after a little over twelve hours of reflection on the event, he was starting to believe that he deserved her harsh words, and even started to think that she was right.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Miss Clarke was right. I was never a good child, I probably gave my parents more issues than they let on, and my dad probably was happy the day he died, because he’d never have to see me again.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Murphy thought, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a little pocketknife. Clarke had given it to him for protection a long time ago, and she gave Emori a matching one. Even though they know how to shoot and handle a gun, Clarke didn’t allow either of them to handle one, unless it was an emergency or she gave them specific permission. Even if they weren’t allowed a gun, she still wanted them to have something to protect themselves, and thus, the pocket knife idea came to be.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Murphy sat, he opened his knife so the blade was out and gently lifted up his shirt slightly, so his torso was exposed. He brought the knife to his side and started to cut, hard enough to hurt, but not so much as to keep </span>
  <span>the</span>
  <span> area bleeding forever.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was always Murphy’s plan for when he self-harmed. He never did it on his arms, only on his torso. The reason why was because his torso was littered with scars, from years of abuse and mistreatment, even stretching as far back as childhood. If he could discreetly harm himself and then let the wounds heal, the scars would just blend in and nobody would suspect a thing.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And this was what Murphy did for close to three weeks. He would keep to himself and spend most of the day in the woods, outside of the center of the community, and he’d gather a little bit of wood, so he’d have something to show for himself when he came home, and he just sat by the lake and self-harmed, along with thinking extremely negatively about himself.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was also withdrawn in the community as well. He barely interacted with anyone anymore, and only speaks when he’s spoken to. He kept more to himself at home, doing anything Clarke asked of him, but in spare time he just keeps to himself, not wanting to risk burdening anyone with his company. He also has started going to bed earlier at night, usually right after supper, if it isn’t his turn to do dishes. If it is, he goes to bed after that. He also wakes up super early, wanting to get a head start on his day and not have to interact with Clarke or Emori if he can prevent it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>One day, close to a month after Clarke had shouted at him, Murphy was sitting by the lake cutting into his side. The day was clear, birds were singing and it was peaceful, a complete contrast to what Murphy felt inside. Methodically, he was slicing into the skin right above his hip, when a voice startled him, causing him to drop the knife.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John? What are you doing?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>He whipped around and saw Echo standing there, concern crossing her features. She got closer and once she noticed that he was cutting himself, she lunged forward and grabbed the knife, before sitting down next to him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After a brief look, she could tell that while his cuts shouldn’t have happened in the first place, they weren’t serious enough where they had to get to Jackson right away. They could talk quickly before she took him to see the doctor.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, what’s wrong? Why are you cutting? What has happened that made you feel the need to hurt yourself?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>In that moment, Murphy felt a sense of relief flood into him. The fact that Echo seemed to care was enough to get him talking. Almost immediately, he let it all out, telling her about what Clarke had said to him, and how he’s been doing this for nearly a month. Once he finished, he could see that Echo was extremely angry, though not at him.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>First things first, Echo took Murphy to Jackson to make sure nothing was infected, and he could get bandages for his fresh wounds. Second, once Jackson had helped Murphy the best he could, Echo scheduled more therapy, with the intent of Jackson talking to Murphy about this event, since he had been hiding it before, and it was now known.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After everything with Jackson was taken care of, Echo found Raven and practically dragged her to the house Clarke, Emori, and Murphy shared. Luckily, the two other girls were there and Echo blew up at Clarke, showing the blonde Murphy’s </span>
  <span>self-harm</span>
  <span> scars, and started to shout at her over what Clarke had said.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As Echo was shouting, it was very easy to see that Clarke felt guilty. It was as if she had not realized how harmful her words were when she said them to Murphy and it was also very easy to see how heartbroken she looked at the realization that she caused Murphy to want to hurt himself, and that he was now so afraid of her that he didn’t even want to be near her for too long.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You said that we are allowed to have a checks and balances type system with you so I’m taking you to Sanctum and we are going to deal with this.” Echo finished off, and though Clarke was somewhat apprehensive over what Echo could do to her, she nodded immediately, wholeheartedly agreeing that she needed consequences for her actions. It didn’t matter if she was a dominant, she had no right to treat Murphy like that. That was not how her relationship with her subs was supposed to work at all.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll stay with them.” Raven said quietly, gesturing towards Murphy and Emori. “Take your time, if you’re gone long, I’ll make sure they are cared for.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Both Clarke and Echo nodded and left the house, on their way to the anomaly stone to open the bridge. On the way, Echo walked over to one of the trees and snapped off one of the thinner, willowy branches, before handing it to Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Peel the leaves and tiny twigs off.” She ordered, and Clarke swallowed thickly before obeying instantly. The minute she saw Echo snap off the tree branch, she knew that she was going to use it as a switch to whip her with. Clarke would never even think of utilizing this sort of punishment on John or Emori, but her consequences were more severe, since she was the </span>
  <span>dom</span>
  <span>, and she knew better. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the time the two made it to Sanctum, Clarke’s dread grew the closer they got to the farm house. It’s not that she was afraid of, or dreaded this punishment, but she was more afraid of the aftermath. She was afraid that this was the final straw and Murphy and even Emori wouldn’t want her anymore, that they wouldn’t have anything to do with her anymore, and she’d be alone.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>As soon as they made it to the house, Echo took the switch from Clarke, and walked into the bathroom. She started to fill the bathtub with water and dropped the switch in, since it was common knowledge that wooden implements like switches and canes hurt worse when soaking wet, because the water made the wood heavier. As soon as Echo dropped the switch into the tub, she went into the closet and grabbed a new bar of soap.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Here’s what we’re going to do.” Echo said as she came back into the bedroom, seeing Clarke on the bed. “I’m going to spank you. Twenty swats over your pants, twenty over your panties, and twenty on bare skin. Then, you’ll have a bar of soap taped in your mouth and you’ll stand in the corner for ten minutes. Then, after your mouth soaping, I’m </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> bend you over the bed, restrain you, and whip you until you wish you were dead. Do you understand me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.” Was all Clarke said. It was all that she could say, and she completely agreed with it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good. Before we begin, I want you to know that you are allowed safe words for this punishment, they are green, yellow, and red, like you use for Murphy and Emori. You are allowed to use them whenever you need them. When you are in the corner with the soap, I’ll give you a little hand bell that you can ring in place of the safe word since you won’t be able to verbalize in the </span>
  <span>ten-minute</span>
  <span> time span. Is that understood?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes Ma’am.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good. Let’s begin.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the time Echo finished the first twenty swats, Clarke was already crying. While it was true that her spankings hurt when she punished Murphy and Emori, Echo and Raven’s hurt worse. Clarke never thought that she’d be on the receiving end ever, and along with feeling pain, she was also really </span>
  <span>embarrassed</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can’t believe you’d say something so stupid to John.” Echo lectured. She pulled Clarke’s pants down and started the second round of twenty, before going back to lecturing. “You are not an idiot Clarke; I can’t believe you’d act like one. If I was John or Emori, I’d be embarrassed to have you as my dominant after all the shit you pulled.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hot tears of guilt and embarrassment flowed down Clarke’s cheeks, but she didn’t fight back, or disagree. She believed every word Echo was saying, because it was true. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>By the time Echo finished the hand portion of the spanking, Clarke was crying so hard she couldn’t think straight. She was so guilt ridden and ashamed of herself that while her brain was registering the pain, she wasn’t even hearing Echo’s lectures anymore. It didn’t matter anyway, because no matter what Echo was saying, Clarke knew it was true and she’d believe it anyway.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She barely felt Echo pull her panties and pants off, since they had gathered around her ankles for the spanking, and was basically on autopilot as the brunette stood her up and walked her to the corner. She didn’t protest or whimper when a </span>
  <span>lathered-up</span>
  <span> bar of soap was shoved in her mouth, with duct tape being put over, to keep it there.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The taste was absolutely awful, and more tears formed in Clarke’s eyes because of it, but she knew better than to question Echo. If Echo thought that this was an appropriate punishment, then Clarke trusted her word, because Echo was not the kind of person who did stuff like this for giggles. There was always a purpose to Echo’s punishments, and Clarke knew she deserved it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The ten minutes went excruciatingly slow for Clarke, and by the time the tape was being removed, the soap was burning her mouth. She felt sick to her stomach, like she was going to throw up, because she had swallowed a lot of the lather by the time she was freed from the corner. That’s why Clarke never soaped Emori or John’s mouth for more than a minute, because she didn’t want them to swallow it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sure, the stuff she used was gentle, but Clarke knew that if soap was swallowed it would cause gastrointestinal distress, and vomiting and diarrhea weren’t fun things to deal with. And now, because she swallowed some of the soap, she was probably going to throw up before they left, or have diarrhea later and just have an all-around yucky stomach for a couple days. Clarke didn’t care about that though; she knew she deserved it. That’s why she didn’t ring the safe word bell when she started swallowing, because she wanted to hurt herself. She hurt Murphy after all, it’d only be fair if she hurt herself without telling Echo.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She knew for a fact that if Echo found out that she was engaging in self harm during her punishment, the brunette would take her to Jackson and have her admitted in the psychiatric ward that he had. That’s why Clarke kept it a secret, because she wanted the freedom to hurt herself without supervision, and without anyone </span>
  <span>interfering</span>
  <span>.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After corner time, Echo helped her out of her shirt and bra, before tying her belly down on the bed. Once Clarke was secure, Echo took the switch out of the bathtub and came back.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Before we begin, do you have any questions?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How many?” Clarke asked, wanting to mentally prepare.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“As many as you think you deserve.” Echo said. “I’m going to make you safe word today. There’s no set number. I’m </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> go until you break and call red.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke only nodded, before resting her head back on the pillow. Despite it being unsafe, Clarke was glad that Echo wasn’t setting limits. That meant that she could technically have Echo go until she passed out, or even got severely injured.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Like hell Clarke would use her safe word.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Safe wording meant that she couldn’t take a full punishment, that she was a coward, and a failure. For hurting Murphy, Clarke believed that she deserved to be whipped until the pain knocked her unconscious. And that’s exactly what she was planning on doing. She wasn’t going to use her safe word. Echo had told her that she was going to whip her until she wished that she was dead, and Clarke was going to take it one step further and have Echo whip her until she was right on death’s door.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Because it was what she deserved.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Echo started, Clarke was screaming in pain, because the lash from the switch felt white hot. Eventually, she got more used to it and wasn’t as vocal, because she could feel her brain fogging up and switching to auto pilot again. Echo was alternating spots, going from her butt, to her sit spots, to her thighs and even across her back. Clarke lost count after fifteen, and she could feel herself slipping into a drop.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even though Clarke was a </span>
  <span>dom</span>
  <span>, right now, she was being punished and in this type of relationship with Echo, she was a sub, so sub drop was possible. She felt extremely foggy and depressed, and it was as if her body wasn’t even registering the hits anymore. She felt something wet drip down her back and sides, whether it was sweat or blood, Clarke didn’t know, or care for that matter. All she knew for sure was that she wanted it to continue. She wanted Echo to keep hitting her. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She thought about John, and regretted all the pain that she caused him. She wouldn’t be surprised if he hated her, and never wanted to be near her again. She thought of Emori, who wasn’t hurt by this event, but probably was scared of her, and didn’t trust her as much as she did before </span>
  <span>hearing</span>
  <span> about what she did to John.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>While she was thinking, Clarke could hear Echo’s voice, though it felt like it was off in the distance. She couldn’t comprehend what the brunette was saying, and it didn’t matter anyway, because five seconds later, her entire world went to black.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Clarke woke up, it was dark outside. She was still on the bed in the farm house, though she wasn’t tied up anymore. She was still on her stomach, and couldn’t remember why, until she slightly moved, and her body froze, paralyzed with pain. Then it all came rushing back to her. She could feel strips of bandages on random parts of her back, and she knew that those were the few places where Echo whipped hard enough to draw blood. Clarke was angry at that, because she had wanted Echo to keep going, to shred her skin on her back so badly that the infection risk would be enough to kill her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She wanted Echo to kill her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>She didn’t feel like she could go back to Earth. She definitely was a danger to her subs, and that meant she was also a danger to every other person on Earth as well. She felt depressed and hateful, thinking about how even if it wasn’t in the same context, Bellamy was right that one time.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>It’s a good thing you’re not in charge because people die when you’re in charge.</span>
  </em>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke couldn’t hear any movement in the house, and at first, she wondered if Echo just left her on Sanctum, and being abandoned was a part of her punishment. In all honestly, that would have been perfectly fine with Clarke. John and Emori, and everyone else for the matter, would be better off without her. Even if Echo was still on Sanctum, maybe Clarke could convince her to leave her here.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Almost on cue, Clarke could hear footsteps into the room. She turned her head and saw Echo, a little bit disappointed that she was still around.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How are you feeling?” Echo asked, and Clarke frowned. Echo should not care how she’s feeling. Her feelings didn’t matter. Even if she felt like garbage, she deserved so much worse.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why’d you stop?” Clarke asked, changing the subject.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why’d I stop? Clarke, you were unconscious.” Echo said, as if it was obvious.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke didn’t say anything else, and instead she propped herself up and slowly sat up. Every movement was painful, and she felt like shit, but she tried her hardest not to show it, because she did not want Echo, or anyone else, to feel bad for her or take care of her. She wanted to do the bare minimum, and let her body heal slowly, so she could be in as much pain as possible, for as long as possible.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can go. It might be best for everyone if I stayed here for a bit.” Clarke said, not looking at Echo as she said it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. We’re going back to Earth when you are ready, I am not leaving you here.” Echo said firmly, not wanting to risk it. Since it’s been over a year since they’ve been on Sanctum, they had no idea when the next eclipse would be. The last thing Echo wanted to do was leave Clarke and then have the blonde kill herself because of the red sun toxin.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine. Let’s go then.” Clarke said, getting up and roughly dressing herself. Jolts of </span>
  <span>white-hot</span>
  <span> pain flashed through her as she dressed but she didn’t care. In fact, she loved every second of it because it was what she deserved.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was very clear that Echo did not agree with Clarke’s pace, but the blonde was already halfway down the stairs by the time she caught up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Clarke, we need to do aftercare.” Echo tried to justify.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You already bandaged me. That’s all I need.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No! You need something to drink, some food, some rest.” Echo argued, but it seemed like Clarke wasn’t even listening to her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not a submissive. I don’t need aftercare.” Clarke snapped, and Echo sighed. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>It’s not like Echo was planning on doing any hardcore aftercare like how Clarke did it with her subs. To Echo, she was only going to do the basics, and make sure Clarke was functioning properly before they went back. She didn’t think that Clarke deserved to be coddled and given </span>
  <span>frivolous</span>
  <span> comfort, because she still hurt Murphy, and Echo was still a bit mad. She did know however, that no matter how angry she was, Clarke still needed medical attention, food, water, and rest as a bare minimum.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>When the two arrived back at Earth, they went to the house and saw Raven, Murphy, and Emori waiting for them, the latter two had a bag packed.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John and Emori both expressed that they wanted to live with me for a bit.” Raven said, and Clarke felt her heart drop. This was exactly what she was afraid of. She knew however, that she had to accept it, because in the end, John and Emori’s safety, well-being, and emotional health were a lot more important than her feelings. The blonde nodded and turned to John, wanting to at least apologize sincerely before they left.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John, I am so sorry for how I treated you. I regret it with all my heart. I hope one day, I can make it up to you and we can go back to how we were.” She said, though she knew that last part would probably never happen. The trust that was lost because of this would take years to build back, if it ever built back at all.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We’ll reconvene in two months.” Raven said, and both Clarke and Echo nodded. “Then we’ll go from there based on how they feel.” She finished, motioning to John and Emori.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>With that, Raven took the two with her, and Echo followed behind, leaving Clarke behind in the empty house. With nothing else to do, she went into the bedroom and locked the door behind her, before going to bed and wondering what she could do to make up for all the pain that she caused John.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Making Up For My Mistakes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The road to recovery can be long.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Clarke, you know that I don’t want you sleeping on the floor.” Octavia said, coming into the bedroom at Clarke’s house. She walked over to where she saw the blonde on the floor and helped her up, before tucking her into bed. She settled Clarke on her stomach and sat down next to her, stroking her cheek and pushing some hair out of her face.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was bad to John. I don’t get to sleep on the bed.” Clarke whispered, referencing the mess that happened three months prior. Almost four months ago, Clarke had snapped at John one day, and for the next three weeks, he had taken it to heart and resorted to self-harm. After Echo found out, she punished Clarke, because the blonde had worked out a checks and balances type system with Raven and Echo, allowing them to step in if she ever did anything to cause harm to her subs. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Long story short, after Echo found out, she punished Clarke horrendously, and Raven took John and Emori with her, and for the time being, the two would be living with her. Clarke knew she screwed up and she completely agreed with what Echo did to her, and with Raven taking away John and Emori, but what she wasn’t expecting was Octavia getting involved.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>One of the punishments that Echo had given Clarke was a ten-minute mouth soaping, where she had taped the soap into her mouth. Because of the lengthy punishment, Clarke had accidentally swallowed a lot of soap, which caused big issues later. After that, Echo whipped her with a switch too, and both of those punishments caused Clarke to get really sick.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>First, the soap caused her to have stomach distress. After Echo, Raven, John, and Emori had left the house, Clarke had gone to bed, but woke up in the middle of the night, needing to throw up. Because she had been whipped, she was in too much pain to move quickly, so she just threw up on the floor, because positioning her head over the side of the bed was all she could do. Until maybe seven or eight in the morning, she was continuously sick and once the vomiting stopped, she was so dehydrated that she couldn’t move. </span>
  <span>Luckily,</span>
  <span> she didn’t experience any other types of stomach distress, with diarrhea or anything like that, but because the dehydration from vomiting so much and the pain from being whipped causing her to be immobile, she truly was suffering alone. Plus, the smell from the vomit on her floor was enough to make her stomach turn and thus a second round of vomiting started, lasting almost seven hours.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Then, for the next two days, Clarke was too weak to even move. She just stayed in bed all day, coming in and out of sleep. Her back was still in excruciating pain, and she knew that the few strips of bandage that Echo had to put on her back needed to be changed, but she couldn’t move, and had no way to call for help. She was alone, and there were points in her waking periods where she was so uncomfortable that she prayed to whatever higher being was out there, that she could die, just to end her suffering.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke wasn’t surprised when Octavia found her in the evening on day three, because Clarke was a leader in the community, and she had probably missed a bunch of meetings. She wasn’t in a position where she could just vanish into the community and do her own thing. People noticed when she was missing. That evening, Octavia had come to see if she was ok, and after finding out from Echo what had happened, she came over and was in shock at the state that Clarke was in. Even though the blonde was too sick </span>
  <span>and, in a position</span>
  <span> where she shouldn’t care, she was embarrassed, and ashamed when she saw Octavia.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just by Clarke’s body language, Octavia could tell that she was humiliated, so she didn’t bring much attention to the situation. The first thing she did was clean up the floor, and then she gently gave Clarke a bath, frowning when she saw the welts, bruises, and other whip marks littering the blonde’s entire backside. Clarke wasn’t speaking during this time, but Octavia made sure to be gentle, and show the blonde that she was cared for.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>During this, Clarke latched onto Octavia. Once she was taken care of, it was clear to the brunette that Clarke was going through depression and she was being extremely self-deprecating to herself. Octavia even caught her trying to claw deep scratches into her arms, which caused the brunette to flip the switch, and try something new with Clarke.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two worked a new set up out. Until Clarke got Emori and John back, or until she was in a better headspace, Octavia would provide Clarke the structure and love that Clarke had provided John and Emori. It was somewhat the same as the </span>
  <span>dom</span>
  <span>/sub relationship that Clarke had with the two, but Octavia was pursuing it to make sure that Clarke did not kill herself, since it was known that the blonde was at times, actively suicidal.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Octavia </span>
  <span>domming</span>
  <span> Clarke was a lot different though. Technically, the two lived in separate houses, and Octavia came over to make sure that Clarke was taking care of herself and was starting to be ok, mentally. All she really wanted from Clarke was a reassurance that she’d try her best, and so far, Clarke has held up her end of the deal. The one thing that Clarke did really enjoy from this new arrangement was the time set aside when she and Octavia would talk, or cuddle. After losing her subs, physical contact was one of the big things that Clarke had missed, even if it was only for a few days. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Plus, Octavia was trying to help Clarke get past what she did to Murphy. It’s not that Octavia wanted Clarke to sweep it under the rug and pretend that it didn’t happen, but she wanted Clarke to stop punishing herself over it. Echo and Raven already punished her; she didn’t need to put herself through any more pain. She agreed that it’d be a good idea to come up with something to make it up to Murphy, but purposefully making herself miserable was not it, and Octavia wasn’t going to stand by and watch her friend hurt herself in order to try and absolve any sins.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No Clarke. You’ve already been punished. You don’t need to sleep on the floor. Especially when you have a nice cozy bed right here.” She justified, going back to stroking her fingers along Clarke’s cheek. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke only shrugged, not really caring. She was too depressed to really mind where she slept. She ruined everything, and Octavia knew that she was stressed out.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The original plan was that Emori and Murphy would live with Raven for two months, and then they would reconvene to see what both subs wanted. Clarke followed this request perfectly, leaving the two alone, and trying to come up with ways for them to trust and forgive her again. She also came up with a plan to make it up to Murphy, but by the time the two months came, nobody said anything.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Raven had told her that Murphy and Emori would tell her when they wanted the meeting to be set up, so Clarke waited patiently, but weeks passed, and two months turned to three, without any arrangements being made. At this point, Clarke has accepted that the meet up would probably never happen, and Murphy and Emori were doing perfectly fine without her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Clarke, please? I want you safe. Plus, it’s winter and I don’t want you freezing to death.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But if I did it wouldn’t matter much. You all would do a quick funeral and then move on. Having to move on is so ingrained in us, plus, we all </span>
  <span>gotta</span>
  <span> die someday so does it really matter when it happens to me?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Clarke, of fucking course it matters. Now, please tell me what’s going on? You haven’t been yourself at all today.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s been a month.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A month? What are you talking about?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“One month ago, we were supposed to meet up with Emori and Murphy. Raven never contacted me about a meeting but I’ve been waiting. I’ve been trying to be patient. I don’t know, I think it’s pretty clear that they don’t want me in their life anymore. I saw them out with Raven a few days ago. They looked so happy. Much happier than when they lived with me.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Clarke......maybe they just forgot. The past few months have been busy with the harvest and getting ready for winter. Would you like me to maybe bring it up and remind them in case they forgot?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. They’re clearly happier with Raven. It’d be a shitty thing for me to interrupt that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But, even if they were still going to want to stay with Raven, you still deserve a heads up. Leaving you in the dark isn’t helpful for anyone.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I mean, do I really deserve that? I’m fine O. I really am. I’m </span>
  <span>gonna</span>
  <span> take the hint and move on.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ok.” Octavia sighed, not wanting to fight it anymore. If Clarke wanted to start trying to move on, she shouldn’t stand in her way, especially when the alternative was overthinking the situation and spiraling into a further depression because of it.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are we doing tomorrow?” Clarke asked, wanting to change the subject.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Actually, you and I are supposed to go to the other two settlements and discuss the next planting season.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke nodded and settled on her side. “Be by at nine?” She asked, and Octavia nodded.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course. I’ll see you tomorrow Clarke. Good night.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Night Octavia.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After Octavia left Clarke’s house, she walked over to Raven’s house, and knocked on the door. She didn’t care if Clarke didn’t want anyone to know. She wanted answers. She wanted to know if she should prepare Clarke for a reunion, or for rejection.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey.” Raven said as she opened up the door. Octavia peeked past Raven and saw Murphy and Emori sitting by the fire, playing a card game.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey. Can I talk with you?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sure, come on in.” Raven said, smiling at Octavia. “What’s up?”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s been a month.” Octavia started, and the tone in her voice caused Murphy and Emori to look up from their game and pay attention to the conversation too.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What do you mean? A month for what?” Raven asked, clearly confused.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“One month ago, we were supposed to reconvene and see how Murphy and Emori felt about maybe having some contact with Clarke again. Clarke told me that you said you’d be the one talking to her and arranging a date. It hasn’t happened yet and I just want to know if it is going to happen or not. It’s fine if Murphy and Emori are happy with you and want things to stay how they are, but Clarke’s spiraling into a depression. She doesn’t want to bother you guys and she’s getting ready to move on and accept that they don’t want her in their lives anymore. I just think she deserves a heads up no matter what they choose. Leaving her in the dark is a shitty thing to do Raven. I’m just bringing it up because I have no idea if you all just forgot, or are ignoring Clarke and the issue of the meeting on purpose.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>From the dumbfounded look Raven was giving her, Octavia could tell almost immediately that she and the two </span>
  <span>submissives</span>
  <span> forgot entirely about the meeting.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll leave you three to talk about some stuff.” She said after a moment, knowing that if they forgot, they probably haven’t even thought about what they wanted yet.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can we meet tomorrow?” Raven asked, feeling bad. She agreed with Octavia. Even if Murphy and Emori chose to stay with her, Clarke didn’t deserve to be left in the dark or have to deal with being strung along.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No. Clarke and I are going to the other settlements. Plus, you have to go to Clarke to set the meeting up, that’s what you said you’d do. Clarke didn’t want me coming here and doing this. She thinks that Murphy and Emori are much happier with you and she doesn’t want to get in the way of that.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>With that, Octavia left. She knew that Raven, Murphy, and Emori had some things to talk about and she wanted to go back to her home too, since she had to wake up early so she and Clarke could leave right away.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After Octavia left, the three had a major talk that lasted for almost two hours. Since Emori wasn’t personally affected by what had happened in comparison to Murphy, she wanted to try living with Clarke again, as soon as Clarke allowed it. Murphy was a little more hesitant, and asked Raven if he could spend the day with Clarke, as a trial run, but still stay overnight with her. Raven felt that those were great ideas and a good starting point, so she decided that the next evening, after Clarke and Octavia got back from the other settlements, she’d talk it over with Clarke and invite her over for a more </span>
  <span>thorough</span>
  <span> meeting the following day.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that’s how it went. Later the next evening, Octavia and Clarke came back from the other settlements, and Raven went over to Clarke’s house, to talk to her.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey Raven. What’s up?” Clarke asked as she answered the door.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey Clarke. Do you have a minute? I need to talk to you.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course, come on in.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two sat down by the fireplace and after a moment, Raven started.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So. If you’re up to it, tomorrow I want you to come over so we can do that meeting that we agreed upon. I am so sorry that it is over a month late, but to be completely honest, we all forgot. It’s been so busy around here, and the time really slipped away.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s completely understandable. It has been really busy.” Clarke agreed. “And I would like to have that meeting, I’m really looking forward to interacting with John and Emori again.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Raven nodded and smiled. “So, we’ll have a more in depth talk tomorrow, but I just wanted to give you a heads up in order to think it over. Emori wants to try living with you full time again. John wants to take baby steps, and spend time with you throughout the day, but still stay at my home with me when it comes to overnight. We’ll talk more tomorrow about what that all entails, but I wanted to let you know so you can prepare for what might happen, and you can get ready for this transition.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Thank you Raven. I really appreciate it.”</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two caught up and talked for a little while before Raven went home, the two excited for the meeting the next day.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>At the meeting, the terms that Raven first told Clarke about were laid out, and the trial run of the three living together started, and it went really well. After two months of the original plan, Murphy was comfortable enough to start living with Clarke full time again just like Emori, and the three worked really hard on patching up their relationship and making sure they were using effective communication skills to help turn their relationship around for the better. While it wasn’t exactly the same as before, the three were working hard to bring their relationship back, and make changes for the better that would help them last a lifetime.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that’s exactly what they did.</span>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. DLTM Final</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A happy ending</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Ten Years Later</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>A lot has happened in the decade since everyone made the move from Sanctum to Earth. After about two years of transition, there were bountiful crop harvests every season, with plenty of fishing opportunities and game to hunt. Once everyone had settled in and adjusted for the most part, many families started to expand, with people getting married and having babies.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>The three communities had strong alliances with each other, and everyone had the opportunity to thrive in their environment. Besides leaders in the three villages watching over and focusing on things like crop yields and the optimal areas for hunting, fishing, and gathering, a system of government was also set up.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Clarke, with the help of Indra, Bellamy, Raven, </span>
  <span>Diyoza</span>
  <span>, and Jeremiah, drafted a set of laws, similar to the Constitution that was put in place in the United States before Apocalypse 1. They however, didn’t exactly replicate the Constitution word for word, as they also took inspiration from the set of laws implemented on Sanctum, The Ark, and the ground as well. That way, all three communities in the alliance could have aspects of government that they were familiar with, and feel that their voices and customs weren’t just cast to the wayside.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>During the first decade back on the ground, the communities got to work. Using all the scientists and engineers available, along with supplies from the mother ship, the bunker and Sanctum, a hospital and a school were built, so the future generations that were being born could get a quality education, and that everyone in the alliance could have access to medical treatment. They also built a trade program building, so people that had an interest in engineering or the medical field could become apprentices and work alongside the professionals already in the field.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>After the first few years of initial set up, Clarke stepped back as a leader and let Indra and Bellamy take more control. In the two years since their reconciliation, Clarke, Emori, and John worked together to make their relationship stronger than it was before. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>In those two years, with the help of Jackson, the three went to both personal therapy and group could therapy sessions. As the two years came to a close, their relationship took some new steps.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>First, they started easing back on their </span>
  <span>dom</span>
  <span>/sub dynamic. It took a few months but now, a decade in, they rarely utilize that dynamic anymore, with some exceptions in the bedroom from time to time. They also moved onto a bigger property and built a bigger house so they could start expanding their family.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>It started four years in. John and Emori started first, and they had a baby girl they named Alexis. A year and a half later, they had a son named Oliver and a year and a half after that they had a son named Levi. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Six months after Oliver was born, John and Clarke had a son named Toby. One year after Levi was born, John and Clarke had twins Althea and Athena. The twins were the last kids that John and Clarke had together and six months later, Emori had her and John’s son David. A year and a half after that, she gave birth to her and John’s last child, a daughter named Rachel.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Now, Alexis six, Oliver is four and a half, Toby is four, Levi is three, Althea and Athena are two, David is one and a half and Rachel is five months old. With eight kids under seven, all three parents were extremely busy co-parenting their large brood, especially since Alexis and Oliver were the only ones who were old enough to go to school. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>Besides expanding their family in the way of children, they also added more animals to their family. Since they had the space, they added more sheep, goats, and three cows, along with Picasso the dog. While their animals didn’t provide as much for the community than the bigger farms, they added more animals for Emori. She loved her sheep that she got on Sanctum, and as the years went on, they brought more in because she loved to take care of them as much as she loved taking care of her children. </span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>They also had different roles in the community now that it’s been ten years and everyone is settled. Emori is a stay-at-home mom and takes care of their home, their kids, and their animals. John works at the school as a teacher and Clarke, who used to take on a leadership role, resigned from being a leader and works at the hospital alongside Jackson, taking care of patients and training new doctors in the hospital. Clarke preferred this role in the community over leadership and the three were really happy with their roles.</span>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>While their relationship and dynamic were very different from when they started, Clarke, John, and Emori were happy with how their life turned out. Though they didn’t do things like they did before, those years when they first met, on the Ring, and the first year on Sanctum really helped build their relationship into what it became. </span>
  
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<p>
  <span>Clarke fully believed that if they hadn’t adopted the dynamic that they did in the early years of their relationship, the three probably wouldn’t be together anymore and they definitely wouldn’t have had their children. While there were some flaws from time to time, for the most part the dynamic helped the three out for all those years that they did it. John and Emori agreed as well and even if they didn’t use it anymore, they were glad that they participated in it in the time that they did.</span>
  
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<p>
  <span>Though that time was behind them, all three were excited to contribute to their communities, and help the next generation preserve Earth and humanity better than those who came before. After all these years, they were finally home.</span>
  
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I wanted to thank everyone who has read this story and the few people that have left nice comments. I however, have decided to turn off comments after a rude person came into my tumblr inbox, plus, I do not want feedback on this story. I wrote this story for one person, the person that it's gifted for, and the only reason I've uploaded it to AO3 is for storage so they can come back and read it whenever they want. As far as I know, they've been very happy with it, and with this specific story, I have no want or need for additional feedback. This of course, was the last chapter, so I hope you all have liked it.</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for reading!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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